


✿BABY STEPS✿

by Multi_Trash07, The_CGal



Category: EXO (Band), GOT7, Mamamoo, NCT (Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Dance, BTS India, Blogger Seokjin, Dancer Jung Hoseok | J-Hope, Dancer Lee Taeyong, Dancer Park Jimin (BTS), F/F, F/M, High School Student Jeon Jungkook, Kim Namjoon | RM & Kim Taehyung | V are Siblings, M/M, Mentioned Kim Yongsun | Solar, Min Yoongi | Suga Is Whipped, Min Yoongi | Suga is Bad at Feelings, Park Jimin (BTS) is Whipped, Suga Gangster, Top Kim Namjoon | RM, jikook - Freeform, taekook
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:26:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 40,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25985848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Multi_Trash07/pseuds/Multi_Trash07, https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_CGal/pseuds/The_CGal
Summary: "We are like a pair of ghungroo, one is never really complete without the other!""Don't worry about the differences we have, they can never create a distance between us. Just let your baby steps lead you to my heart."The story of love, dance, and the love for dance.A BTS DESI AU
Relationships: Jeon Jungkook/Kim Taehyung | V, Jeon Jungkook/Park Jimin, Jung Hoseok | J-Hope/Kim Yongsun | Solar, Jung Hoseok | J-Hope/Min Yoongi | Suga, Kim Namjoon | RM/Kim Seokjin | Jin, Kim Taehyung | V/Original Female Character(s), Kim Yongsun | Solar/Moon Byulyi | Moonbyul, Lee Taeyong/Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten, Min Yoongi | Suga/Park Jimin
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5
Collections: BTS Fanfictions, BTS au fics faves





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bangtanbeguiled](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bangtanbeguiled/gifts).



> This AU is inspired by a fanart by @tikklil from twitter.  
> Here's the link to it: https://twitter.com/tikklil/status/1168984689824149505

**Prologue.**

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_Busan is Seoul's little sister to the south, and also the land of dreamy beauty and vibrancy. It's one of the busiest city of the nation too, with blocks and blocks of tall buildings packed up together..._

_One such tall building was - **The Waltz Dance Studio.**_

_Now you may wonder, what's so special in it? There are thousands of dance studios in Busan, South Korea being a country that values performing arts to a great extent.. and it is probably just one of them!_

_The Waltz Dance Studio was set up years ago, by Mr. Jeon, a leading businessman in South Korea, the owner of the international café chain 'Coffee Mug' and his Indian wife, a woman of culture, a dancer herself._

_The Studio was huge - where students were trained on almost all the famous dance forms, be it hip-hop, ballet, or Korea's classical forms, but the institute was never as popular as it was then._

_And the reason of this sudden popularity of The Waltz was one person._

_The prodigal dancer, a talent born once in a thousand years - **Jung Hoseok.**_

_When Hoseok decided to be a professional dance trainer, no other studio was ready to accept him._

_After all, Hoseok was just a self-trained street dancer, without any record of professional training, why would students accept him as an instructor?_

_But one person did._

_The person who had an eye for real talent._

_Mrs. Jeon did give Hoseok the job._

_And no wonder, Hoseok became famous amongst the youth of Busan, for his style, his unique art of choreography, his perfection, and also the way he looked, the way he dressed up, and the way he smiled to anyone and everyone to make them feel warm - he got a new name and became popular as **The Sunshine.**_

_Some people said the name was because he had such a bright personality, some said because he looked so hot both on and off stage, but whatever might be the reason, the other studios regretted rejecting him, as slowly The Waltz became the biggest dance studio in town._

_Mrs. Jeon, just humbly smiled at their success, as she said, "I have a real eye for talent, specially if it is dance. I am from a country like India, and I know not every talent has, or requires a certificate. I was born with a love for dance in my veins, and a piece of paper is nothing to prove or disapprove of it!"_

_However, it was sad, that her own son, **Jeon Jungkook,** had no affection or attraction towards the art of dance . _

_He was a guy of few words, contented in his own bubble, spending his youth happily with his friends in his residential school in Seoul._

_Jungkook believed painting and singing were better alternatives, his favourite pass time was to watch boxing videos to train himself accordingly, and his love for photography and videography was unmatchable, but dance was never his cup of tea._

_So Mrs Jeon was happy with her children of Waltz and the team of instructors, led by Hoseok._

_Hoseok's favourite student, in the entire batch, was only one guy. They used to call him "The blue haired prince of dance"._

**_Park Jimin._ **

_He was an extremely talented boy, and when he moved on the beats gracefully, no one in the room could help but get mesmerised, with their jaws dropped, and eyes bulged out in amazement._

_But Jimin, a cheerful guy with chubby cheeks, pretty eyes, and a very handsome face, had two very distinct traits in his personality._

_One, he was always late. And no matter how much Hoseok scolded him, he could never get out of his habit._

_And second, he was always looking for doing something new. His hunger for experimenting never satiated, and he kept on trying new things, be it dyeing his hair blue, or getting a temporary tattoo on his midrib that read "Nevermind"._

_Jimin's love for new things, always attracted him to a special room in the Waltz._

_He was sure, something very new went on behind the closed doors, but since he was always late, he could never get the chance to explore the mystery, and that increased his attraction manifold._

_Jimin was a person who believed that listening to what his heart told him was the most important. But he still wasn't sure what it was actually trying to tell him._

_Was he supposed to go and explore what went on beyond the closed doors of that mysterious room?_

_He just wanted to take **baby steps** towards the sound of his heart, who knows, maybe, it would take him to a new world, a new country, or maybe to the life of a new person?_

_✧༺♡༻✧_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is our first time publishing on this platform and we are still trying to figure things out. Please bear with us.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Chapter 1 : "Late? Not Today!"_ **

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~ Jimin's P. O. V. ~_

As the alarm clock set off at 6 in the morning I knew my beauty sleep had to get over. Although I didn't want to get out of my comfortable bed, I didn't want to get a dose of rebuke from Hoseok hyung on his first day at the studio after his vacation. I had to pull myself out and walked towards the washroom. _Only if Taeyong hyung would have been taking our classes forever._

After completing the chores and gulping down my cereal, I took up my backpack and walked out of my apartment. 

Checking the locked door twice, I headed towards the bus stop.

Unexpectedly, a bus pulled in in two minutes and I got a comfortable window seat for the first time in my life. 

Maybe I should listen to Hoseok hyung and try to get up early if it means I can secure good seats for the journey instead of sulking in the stuffy seats at the back daily. As the cool morning breeze hit my face and tousled my blue hair, I stopped sulking about rising early. 

Soon, the bus dropped me off at my destination and wheezed off. I began walking towards the studio. 

'Waltz' had a speciality which no other studios has, maybe not even in the whole of South Korea. As it was run by an Indian lady, few classical dance forms were also taught here.

However, I never cared to visit that wing of the studio. Hip hop had always been my thing. 

Dropping my backpack on the floor of the deserted room, I collapsed down for a short nap. I still had twenty minutes to spare before Hoseok hyung comes in followed by the ones who would be late. 

But as soon as I closed my eyes, a different yet enchanting sound filled my senses. A soft, continuous melody seemed to enamour the place and my curiosity peaked up.

The sound kept on intensifying and also picked up pace. 

From a soft jingle to a powerful rhythm the sound heightened my senses and I decided to bunk my nap and find out the source of the melody. 

I walked out of the room and began following the sound like a hypnotised person. As I turned a corner, I saw the door of another room in the studio open. I was certain that the sound was originating there. 

Seeing the light and shadows of humans, I could easily figure out that some kind of dance class was going on. I could hear a female voice chanting absurd syllables along with the unknown rhythm. 

I walked up to the door and peeped in.

Only five girls were performing intricate footwork with some beautiful hand movements. A lady was chanting the syllables and leading them. 

I assumed her to be the Indian owner of the studio. 

I stood staring at the group enchanted without caring about my own class or Hoseok hyung. The way everyone stepped at the same time synchronising with the rhythm delighted me along with their amazing poses. 

I didn't recognise the strange thing everyone was wearing around their ankles. But I was quite sure that the small metallic spheres were the origin of the sweet captivating sound. 

I wished to see myself mesmerising people with that graceful dance form which I didn't even know the name of. 

My stream of admiration however came to a sudden halt as I felt someone tapping my shoulder. 

I turned around a bit irritated and found Taeyong. He had been taking our classes last week when Hoseok was out on a vacation with his family in Gwangju. Unlike Hoseok, Taeyong was much more friendly and flexible when it came to punctuality. 

I was obviously surprised and asked, "Hyung, what are you doing here?" 

He rested his hands on his hips and questioned back in a cocky tone, "Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?... Have you checked the time?" 

I returned to my senses at his words and pulled out my mobile while cursing at myself. It was 7:35 and I was late for Hoseok hyung's class by five minutes. 

Taeyong could clearly see that I was freaking out and he grabbed my shoulder to get me under control.

"Relax, Jiminie. He won't tell you anything. You're his favorite student!" 

"But Hoseok hyung doesn't care. He is going to be really angry with me I know." 

"Chill down and just follow me. Come on," Taeyong pulled me by my hand walking towards the previous room. 

Although he looked unstressed I knew I had made a blunder. I felt like shit. I had woken up early only to be in time for Hoseok hyung's class and here I was daydreaming. I couldn't believe that I was actually late. _Perhaps my backpack was the only thing on time in the room._

I followed Taeyong quietly with my face hung low in embarrassment. Taeyong hyung pushed the door open and before Hoseok hyung could rebuke us, he spoke up, "Before you start scaring that kid, let me tell you he was the only person who reached early for your class." 

"So where was he till now?" Hoseok asked calmly, which I was expecting the least. 

I didn't have to speak up as Taeyong continued, "He was quite enchanted with Bharatnatyam." 

Hoseok seemed to understand Taeyong's enigma. He gave a slight nod of understanding and signalled us to join in. 

I thanked him with a short bow and moved to my usual spot while Taeyong joined Hoseok in the front.

A few students glared at me with jealousy and I could already guess why. I was accustomed to them for the last few months ever since I joined the studio and became one of Hoseok's favorite dancers. But I knew I had a lot to learn from him yet. 

Hoseok clapped to get our attention and declared that we will be starting a new choreography toda. The song 'Highway to Heaven' began playing and I cheered up. It was one of my favourite songs and I was genuinely happy to be a part of this choreography. 

We observed Hoseok and Taeyong presenting their flawless performance first and then we began repeating after them. 

I tried following the steps as much as I could but kept on making silly mistakes. I could clearly see how I was putting the wrong step while everyone followed hyungs perfectly. 

I didn't know why I was being a jerk but all I knew was that I was envisaging the beautiful captivating moves I had seen this morning. 

I found myself wishing to put on those strange balls on my ankles and folding my fingers in those graceful gestures. I never thought that I would be attracted to any other dance form in such a way, leave alone some classical stuff which I had never seen before. 

I wanted to know the name so bad.

And then I recalled Taeyong mentioning some big name to Hoseok. I took a mental note of asking Taeyong the name once again hoping he wouldn't suspect anything. 

My chain of thoughts snapped as I heard Hoseok shouting my name. I composed myself in a moment and looked at him. 

"Y-yes h-hyung?" I asked. 

The whole class was staring at me. I didn't know how to react. I just wanted to disappear from the place _. I didn't like such unwanted attention ever._

"What's wrong with you, Jimin?" Hoseok asked exasperatedly. 

"I'm sorry, hyung," I mumbled somehow. 

"A sorry doesn't help your mistakes. You need to concentrate in the class. You're going wrong even in simple steps. I don't expect this from you." 

I had never felt so humiliated. I hated myself for making silly mistakes; I hated myself for not paying enough attention. I fumbled with the hem of my t-shirt and looked down at my feet. I didn't want anyone to see me as this mess. I didn't like all those pairs of eyes on me.

I wanted everyone to look away but I knew no one would unless and until Hoseok would resume the class. 

Taeyong again turned out to be my saviour and ordered everyone to resume practice. Hoseok gave me a last look of warning and complied with Taeyong's request. 

I heaved a sigh of relief and concentrated in the class. I had had enough shit from Hoseok today. 

That guy always amused me, or rather amazed me. Most of the times he is merry and friendly. Whenever he smiles he radiates positive energy. But when he leads a choreography or checking on us during practice sessions and performances, he transformed to a completely different person whom I could never recognise or feel comfortable with. I was scared of this agitated and perfectionist Hoseok and always tried to stay out of his way.

But it seemed today was really my bad day. 

After a few more rounds, we decided to wrap up for today.

I walked to a corner of the room and sat down beside my backpack. I pulled out a bottle and sipped half of its contents. I closed my eyes and tried to catch my breath. I could hear people walking out while conversing with each other. As I opened my eyes, a few people waved me goodbye and I waved back at them. 

Once the whole place was vacated, I decided to leave too. However, I missed out Hoseok and Taeyong at the other corner. 

As I was about to walk out, Hoseok called out my name. 

I turned around without freaking out as his tone seemed to be calmer than before. I hoped that he wouldn't scold me anymore. I liked the way he took extra care of me and I didn't want to fall out of his good books. 

As I stopped before them, Taeyong stood up and patted my shoulder before leaving us to ourselves.

I tried to tone down my nervousness at the same time. 

Hoseok started speaking, "Sit down, Jimin." 

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	3. Chapter 3

** _Chapter 2 : "New Beginnings"._ **

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~ Jungkook's P.O.V. ~_

I struggled with the knot of my tie as my fingers didn't show a single hint of calming down.

It was our Graduation Day and I was freaking out beyond my expectations. I had my own reasons. I knew I couldn't mess up and let my parents down. I had to get through this properly. But I wasn't helping myself at all, I could assure that much. 

Suddenly I found a pair of arms encircling my waist and a face resting on my shoulder. I let out a short breath and leaned back towards him.

He was the only one who could calm me down here and everywhere else on earth. 

I turned around and whispered, "Taetae, I don't know if I can do this." 

Taehyung cupped my cheeks and pulled up my face to make me look at his beautiful eyes. He planted a soft kiss on my lips and replied, "Shh, Kookie! I know you are amazing and you'll deliver the speech perfectly!...Now let me fix your tie and get you ready. We only have ten minutes to reach the venue." 

I smiled faintly and nodded. Taehyung, my roommate, my classmate and most importantly, my boyfriend steadied me by grabbing my shoulders. Then he focused on my tie and I was ready with a perfect knot in a minute. 

Taehyung looked impressed with his own work and smirked. "Now you're absolutely ready, baby boy!" 

"Stop it, Tae," I smacked his arm away as I laughed at his tone. I knew what he was upto but we shouldn't be thinking about all that now. 

"Let's go now then," Taehyung screamed while pulling my arm and dragging me towards the door as I giggled behind him. 

_**A few hours later**_

I snuggled closer to Taehyung as we cuddled on my bed back in our dorm.

Most of the students had already gone back home with their parents after the ceremony was over. Only a few more like the two of us were staying back. Taehyung could have returned today if he wished , but being the wonderful angelic person he was, he decided to stay back until I returned. I wasn't complaining either. I would get to see him some more before we were torn apart for miles after these three years. 

High school had been fun only for him. 

Taehyung made me feel at home from the very moment I met him for the first time in this room three years ago. He was such a cheerful person that I got over my shyness in a few days. We didn't remember spending time away from each other within this interval except for going home during vacations. 

When I first saw him, I didn't think I would ever fall for him. _Hell no, I didn't even know my sexuality back then_. Taehyung even helped me figure out that, saying it was okay to be who I was. 

And I knew at that moment two years ago that I had fallen for him. 

I didn't think I would love anyone else on this planet ever again the way I loved Taehyung. 

_He was so many of my 'firsts'. And I wanted him to be my 'lasts' too_. I wanted to cherish this handsome boy forever. 

"See, I told you that everything's going to fall in place," Taehyung said as his deep voice resonated in the locked room. 

I smiled and replied, "That's why I listen to you, Tae." 

He kissed my temple and said, "I will miss you, Kookie." 

My smile disappeared.

I didn't want to talk about this now.

Tomorrow his parents would come to take him back to Daegu and I would also leave for Busan. I didn't like the fact that we would have to be so far apart without knowing when we would be able to meet again. 

I hugged him across his torso and mumbled, "I will miss you too, Tae." 

I didn't want to be a crybaby today so I sniffed hard to stop my tears. But Taehyung knew better.

He turned around to look at me and whispered, "I will always love you, baby. We're just going cities apart. I will call you everyday I promise." 

"I know. But I'm scared. I haven't been away from you like this ever. And what if my parents find out about us? They're nothing like yours'. They will surely disown me." 

"Shut up! They are your parents, Jungkook. They will never hate you. Take your time and one day you'll be able to tell them I know. You're brave," Taehyung spoke while brushing my hair. 

"I don't know," I mumbled uncertainly as my words got muffled on his chest. 

Taehyung rubbed my back and whispered, "It's okay, Kookie. Now let's go to sleep. We need to wake up early tomorrow." 

I nodded and pulling myself up a bit I planted a swift kiss on his lips and laid on my back with a smile. He chuckled and kissed me on my cheek.

And before I knew, I was asleep in his arms. 

_**Next morning**_

  
"You've packed up everything, right?" Taehyung asked like a concerned parent. 

I laughed and hugged him from behind. "Yes, daddy," I whispered. 

He swathed my arm and continued in his strict tone, "I'm not joking Jungkook. Check your belongings once again." 

I pouted and moved away. I knew he was being serious but I also knew he was unnecessarily worrying. I had packed everything. Taehyung was checking all the closets to make sure we weren't leaving back anything. After five more minutes, he seemed satisfied. 

Finally he calmed down and sat beside me on my bed. I leaned on his shoulder and he enclosed me in a hug.

The silence between us was so comfortable. I wanted to stay like that forever. 

However, my mobile rang breaking into our final moments. I pulled it out from my pocket and found Young-sun Unnie calling. That meant she was already here. 

Taehyung let me go as I answered it. While talking to her, I heard Taehyung's mobile ring too. So, his parents had also reached. 

I hung up in a few more seconds and found Taehyung ready to leave with all of our luggage, leaving only my backpack for me to carry. 

I picked it up and slinging it across my shoulders, I cupped his cheeks and kissed him for the last time. It was deep yet calm and loving. As we pulled apart, Taehyung whispered, "I love you." 

I whispered back, "I love you too." 

We smiled for the final time and began walking out of the room. 

Outside the dorm, we met Taehyung's parents first while Yong-sun Noona pulled in a car, which I didn't recognise, on the driveway. I exchanged the last goodbyes with Taehyung and his family. Yong-sun too conversed with them for a while. Then Taehyung helped me get my luggage into the back of the car and I occupied the passenger seat. 

As I waved him goodbye for the last time, Yong-sun started the ignition and we were soon on main road. 

She tousled my hair once and asked, "Excited to get back home?" 

I whined but smiled. "Yes, Noona!" 

She chuckled and concentrated on the road. I couldn't control my curiosity anymore and asked, "Where did you get this car?" 

She replied, "I rented it from one of my friends here. Your school was too far from the airport." 

"Oh I see," I muttered and looked out of the window. It was pretty normal for us to take a flight back to Busan instead of the train. Appa would never let us travel on buses or trains for so long. 

Yong-sun drove to the airport and stopping the car, she called her friend.

The girl reached in a few minutes and leaving it with her, we began walking towards the main area. Yong-sun had already grabbed my suitcase and was pulling it behind her. We completed the required security checks and leaving my trolley at the conveyor belt, we collected our boarding passes. 

"Let's get something to eat," Yong-sun suggested as we still had around half an hour for us to board the flight. 

I nodded and we walked towards the outlet of 'Coffee Mug', Appa's cafe chain which has outlets all over South Korea and a few in Japan too. 

The manager recognised us in a second and took our orders. Soon, I was sipping on my cappuccino while Yong-sun relished her cold coffee. 

I was busy looking at the numerous people walking up and down the place. The transparent glass was stopping any kind of sound from entering the cafe. 

But an abrupt question from Yong-sun broke my trance and made me choke on the hot beverage. 

" _You like him, I mean Taehyung, right?_ " she asked. 

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	4. Chapter 4

**_ Chapter 3 : "New Beginnings". _ **

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~ Hoseok's POV ~_

Finally, I was back to my paradise, _The Waltz Dance Studio._

Today was my first day after my elaborate vacation at Gwanju with my family and friends. To be honest, I was one of those people who didn't really get excited over breaks. In fact, I didn't want to take a break, but had to, just because Mrs. Jeon insisted. 

She thought that I overworked myself, and she said she felt bad for me, and kind of forced me to go to Gwanju for two weeks. As for me, even though my family was of course the most special to me, I felt happier here in Busan, miles away from my home. 

_Busan might not be my homeland, but it was no less special._

Because, wherever there was dance, it was my paradise. And it felt so awesome to be back at Waltz, the place where I spent the maximum time since I left my home. 

If Mrs. Jeon would not have been there, I , Jung Hoseok could never become the popular "Su _nshine_ ", the fact that I dared to leave everything back at my birthplace to venture in a new city, new job, would have gone all in vain if she didn't believe in me and my talent. 

She's such an awesome lady, polite yet firm, sensitive yet strict, probably that's why Mr. Jeon instantly fell in love with her, the very first time he went to India for his business trip. 

I remember Mrs. Jeon once telling me how Mr. Jeon's family didn't really give their consent for the marriage, as they believed it was never possible for an Indian girl to value Korea's ethnic cultures. 

And I remember how she said, loud and proud, "But Love is the strongest of all, undefeatable forever!" 

I didn't know if whatever she used say about love was true...I have never experienced 'love' in that terms. 

But yes, there was _someone_ , _someone_ very special who never failed to make me happy, whose one glimpse energised and boosted me, and who always made me blush. 

And while I walked up the stairs of Waltz, my eyes were busy to look around and catch a glimpse of that ' _someone_ '. 

_Kim Yong Sun._

She was a guest instructor at Waltz, not a regular visitor, but was not less famous among the teens, especially girls. Because she taught a dance form which was not very commonly taught, but all teen girls had great fantasies about it. Pole Dance. 

When Yong Sun moved gracefully , like a vibrant cherry silk wrapped delicately on a silver pole, her limbs in perfect synchronisation, her delicate eyes and bright smiles not letting her audience realise how difficult , and dangerous the movements were, I couldn't help but stare at her for hours, like a fool. 

But today when I found the room allotted for pole dance empty, I bit my lips in gloom, and then turned to check for the last time in Mrs.Jeon's class. Yong Sun, or Solar, as Mrs.Jeon called her, could sometimes be found in Bharatnatyam classes too, not because she knew the Indian form, but because she looked up to Mrs.Jeon as her mother, and liked to spend the maximum time with her. 

_Solar_ , and _Sunshine_ \- the Sunshine can never be there without the Sun, and the Sun's glory lies in its Sunshine. Whenever this romantic idea used to strike my mind, I used to laugh like a madman. 

But today I found Solar nowhere.

Maybe she had gone to some other place for some work. I was utterly disappointed, as I was really looking forward to meet her after so many days. 

Sighing, I walked towards my kingdom, the Hip-hop wing of the studio. 

Instantly, the sight of my students smiling at me cheered me up. 

I carried my eyes over their smiling faces, and suddenly it struck me. He wasn't there! 

"Where is Park Jimin?!", I shouted angrily. 

I wasn't really partial, but again, it wasn't hidden that Jimin was my favourite student, the blue-eyed boy of the hip-hop team. I have had the opportunity to experience many dancers in my life, but never did I ever witness someone as talented and dedicated as him. Sometimes it felt as if God had given that guy everything, looks, talent, personality, except one thing - punctuality. And I , as an instructor, always feared that this would come in his way of achieving perfection. 

But no matter how much I scolded him, he just never got better. 

Unexpectedly, Taeyong and Jimin entered the room together, and before I could ask anything, Taeyong spoke up. 

_** Three Hours Later **_

I knew it was very necessary for me to talk to Jimin, after what I had been informed by Taeyong. 

After I concluded the class and everyone left, I called Jimin . 

"Sit down, Jimin", I said. 

He seemed nervous, but I knew that he knew our relationship was not just that of an instructor and a student. We both knew we were closer than that, like brothers, and I wished about nothing but the best for him. 

"Why were you so inattentive today? Is something wrong?" 

"No, not at all hyung, I'm really sorry for worrying you!", he hurriedly replied. 

"Relax", I tried to calm him down, "I am just asking. But then, what's wrong?" 

"I don't know...." Jimin seemed to be really confused.

"Did you really go to the Bharatnatyam class today?" 

I remember seeing a faint blue head, of Jimin's height, near that room when I went there to search for Solar, but I didn't really recognise him back then. 

As soon as I mentioned "Bharatnatyam" I saw Jimin perk up at the name and get all excited, "Yes! That's the name Taeyong Hyung mentioned!" 

His sudden childishness made me burst into laughter, as I saw his cheeks getting redder than a rose. 

"So you really like that form, huh?" I questioned. 

Jimin nodded in affirmation, and smiled down at the floor. 

I hummed for a moment and said, "You can change your class in the studio, you know that, right?" 

His head snapped up, a look of shock in his eyes. He seemed clueless, afraid, maybe he was questioning his liking for the unknown dance form from a totally different culture, and trying to figure out whether it was enough to replace hip-hop with it. 

But I had already prepared myself. 

I patted his knees, bruised from all the falls he had experienced while putting his everything into learning hip-hop all these years. 

"Cool down, Jimin. You can like any form you want to! No one will stop you from doing that. And you can always learn new forms!" 

"But..." he mumbled, pouting. 

I realised it wasn't his love for hip-hop that was stopping him, but his love for me. He didn't want to distance himself from me. But loving what he was learning was much more important than that. I could feel a burning sensation near my throat, but I also knew it was time for me to let him go. 

"See Jimin, I know how good you are at hip-hop. But if you think Bharatnatyam is beautiful, then you should take a chance. Maybe you should change the class, and shift to Bharatnatyam for some time. Otherwise, you would definitely regret it later. And if you don't feel comfortable there, you can always shift back here. I will always take you back." 

As soon as I finished, I saw him looking at me, amazement prominent in his eyes. I smiled at him to assure him that I wasn't joking. 

"You are serious, right, hyung? It would be good if I give it a try, right?" 

"Yes Jimin. It would be difficult at first, but I have full faith in you, and I know, you'll ace it! We should not waste time. Maybe I should take you to Mrs.Jeon this very second. And that way you can also look at the form more clearly!" 

I loved how his face brightened up.

He jumped on me, his small figure wrapping against mine tightly, and as he hugged me, he mumbled numerous "thank you-s" in my ears as we both laughed heartily. 

However the light on his face soon faded away when we found out that the class is already over, and all the students, as well as Mrs.Jeon had left.

Suddenly, it flashed across my mind that she had told me over the phone that his son was returning from Seoul after finishing his high school that very day. Maybe that's way she had concluded the class earlier today, and Solar, too, did not come to Waltz. 

I ruffled Jimin's hair, as I could see small teardrops glistening on his chubby cheeks. I smiled and said, "Don't worry. We'll talk to her tomorrow itself. Let's go home now." 

He nodded and we both headed out.

 _We parted ways_ as Jimin went to the right and me to the left. Maybe it was the last time I spent so much time with my favourite student. From tomorrow, maybe, he would just be Jimin and not my student anymore.... 

I kept looking at my student for the last time as he walked away. Suddenly, something else caught my attention. 

A guy, not much taller than Jimin, all draped in black, appeared out of nowhere. He looked mysterious; it seemed as if he was trying to follow Jimin, without his knowledge. 

Was it something I was supposed to be concerned about? What if that guy... 

No, no, I was probably over thinking. Jimin returned home taking the same path every day, I shouldn't be so worried. 

I turned and headed home. 

_~ Jimin's P.O.V. ~_

Today was the happiest day of my life. I never thought Hoseok hyung would make everything so easy for me!

Honestly, he is the best in the world! 

But I should also remember that he mentioned it would be difficult in the beginning, and I should prepare myself well for that. 

However, right now, I am in a bigger problem. I just figured out I had not even a grain left for dinner! 

It was so difficult to live without parents. But there was no other option either. Appa worked in Seoul, and mother had to be there to take care of him as he got sick so often. They wanted me to accompany them to Seoul, but how could I leave Waltz? Also, Busan was my birthplace, and being the homesick jerk I am, I could never feel comfortable anywhere else. 

I took my jacket ; Busan is very chilly at night; and headed out. Thank God the convenient store was so near my house and was open till late. 

I bought few packets of Ramen, it would be enough for tonight.

I needed to wake up early the following morning, so I shouldn't be out for long. I planned that I would do the rest of the shopping tomorrow while returning from my classes. 

I pushed the store doors open, and came out with the packets in my hand. 

But as soon as I turned, I felt something strange, I felt as if a pair of eyes was looking at me constantly, watching every move of mine. 

It was cold but I started sweating. I could sense someone was coming closer to me from the back. I gasped.

_"What should I do now?! " I thought._

I tried to steady myself. I decided that I would run to my house as fast as I could without looking back. 

And I did accordingly. 

It was strange that I had this weird feeling for months now, but never could catch anyone. Maybe it was just my imagination...? Maybe there wasn't anyone in reality? 

_~ 3rd Person P.O.V. ~_

Little did Jimin know that there was really someone, there was _him_. 

He smiled wickedly in the dark while he uncovered my face, removing his black mouth mask. 

Four large alphabet rings glistened on his four fingers under the streetlights which read " _S.U.G.A."_

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 4 : Light In The Dark**

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~ Yoongi's POV ~_

_I smiled in the dark as I removed my black mouth mask_.

Jimin was running frantically back to his house. Maybe he could sense my presence. But that didn't bother me.

Nothing in the world could ever bother me, could stop me from following him around, something I had been doing for months now. I was in love, and it was no joke.

I saw Jimin entering his apartment, and I, too, started walking back to my rented apartment, now that my motive was fulfilled.

Park Jimin; the love of my life; my everything...

I was Min Yoongi, and certainly not one of those good guys who roam about in the streets of Busan. I knew that I was evil, but I never wanted to be something else either. Black was my colour, the colour of my work, my intentions, my life. But there was someone, the only one, who brought in a dash of cheerful light in my dark suffocating life.

I still remember that day...

It was not the first time I came to this street, but it was the first time I saw him. I was here with my friends, the only two of them I trust. After all, when you belong to the dark evil strata of the society and so do your "friends", when you play with trust yourself, it's difficult to trust anyone else. But two of them were my all-time companions.

We had come here for some work, and while returning, one of them showed a high building. All three of us were highly intoxicated, so I didn't really remember what he was saying about it. He was probably trying to tell us about his girlfriend ...or something of that sort... who was somehow related to that building.

Suddenly, I saw a figure, running towards the place, and that changed my life forever.

It was dark that day, but I found the light of my life.

It was a guy, he had left something back in that place by mistake, and had come there to inquire about it. After conversing with the security guard for few minutes, he left, looking sad and tensed, but even though it had been months since then, this memory could not leave my mind.

I was not in my right state back then, so I couldn't believe what I saw, but next morning, when I could find out every minute thing about that guy with the help of my sources spread out, and when I saw him in the bright daylight, I absolutely fell in love.

No one as attractive as Jimin was ever born, and would ever be.

I suddenly bumped into a dog, and my web of thoughts broke apart. It was the landlady's pet; I had reached home.

I quickly climbed up the stairs, opened the door of my small stuffy room, and went in. It was dark inside, but I was never really fond of light. 

I switched on the dim bulb near the couch, found a packet of bread and few chips in the kitchen, and gulped them down. My life had always been like this, and I didn't really care about myself anymore. Food was never tempting to me...

 _Only Jimin was_.

I would lie if I said that it was the time of my life when I was getting bored of the familiar darkness, and wanted to explore the light that seemed so calming. Yes, I did dream of Jimin being with me, cooking a delicious meal for me so that I didn't have to survive on this bits of snacks any more, I did dream of him complaining about how dim and stuffy the room was, how small it was for two people, and we both walking down the alleys, hand in hand, looking for a new apartment for the couple, I did dream of an utopia where Jimin was mine.

Probably because everything about me was so dark, heavy, evil and stifling, I was so attracted to the beautiful blue-haired boy, whose cheeks were kissed by the sunlight, lips carried tons of happiness, and whose eyes held all the stars of the galaxy. 

However, darkness and light could never meet as lovers; there was only one way for them to be together. And thus, I decided to be his shadow.

I myself didn't know when it had become my habit and also the best part of my life. Every morning I woke up only and only to make sure not to miss a single glimpse of him, to cherish his unearthly beauty as long as I could. I didn't want him to know about my existence, acknowledge me as his lover, all I wanted was to look at him, being himself, doing stuffs, smiling, crying, getting angry, which filled my heart.

I finished the minimal dinner, washed my plates, and promptly lied down on my bed. It was a long day and I was really very tired, but that was not the reason why the bed was my favourite thing in my room.

Yes, I loved to sleep, but I loved to dream of Jimin even more.

I took out my phone, its screen all cracked, owning to my rough job, but it was enough for me to feel the addicting warmth of his beauty. I tapped on Jimin's pictures I had managed to click and save on my phone, and stared at his marvelous physique while licking my lips.

I went to a boys' school; till I had to drop out because of circumstances, but from my very early teenage I knew that I was more attracted to boys than girls. However, my life had been too harsh for me to afford to spend time on love, but I could not just resist Jimin. His appeal was just too strong for that.

He had a perfectly sculpted physique, his long legs, his muscular thighs, his ripping biceps and contrasting short fingers, I didn't know how to stop fantasizing about him. I always found myself getting fanatic over his fleshy buttocks. 

Whenever I could manage to peep in and see him dancing, the way he moved, as if he was the king of grace, his blue hair ruffling with the rhythm, his shirt exposing his tight abs now and then, I literally used to drool over the imagination of having him with me, on my bed. I could not stop thinking about how blissful it would have been to be on top of him, our proportions matched so well, too.

His face was so soft, his skin glowing, and his cheeks were always of the colour of rose, and this delicacy of his face, mixed with the masculinity of his figure, was enough for me to die over him every moment. His eyes could talk, and the sound of his laugh was my favourite music. 

But my most favourite thing about Jimin were his full lips. Whenever he used to bite them, or licked them to make them wet, I could feel a rush of hormones inside me, but I had to gulp down my erotic thoughts and control my feelings. Deep down, I wanted to place my lips on his so bad, I want my tongue to play with his so bad, I wanted to explore every nook and corner of his amorous naked body so bad.

I could never believe someone could be this beautiful and handsome on this cruel earth, if I had never met Jimin. He was so attractive that my life began revolving around him even before I could figure that out. 

Thus, Min Yoongi was reduced to an insect, which was madly attracted to the delicate flower. But even an insect was lucky enough to taste its nectar, while I just madly followed my flower.

It wasn't impossible for me to drag Jimin to my bed, and I needed just one night to make him mine, but something always stopped me from doing that. 

And thus, here I was, setting my alarm at 6 in the morning, so that I could wake up in the right time and follow him to Waltz.

_* Next Morning *_

I was in the same bus as Jimin. We were heading to Waltz. He was wearing a black hoodie and it fitted him so well.

"Good for you" was printed on his hoodie, and I knew, he was definitely the Best for me. I already had clicked a lot of pictures by now. I didn't know where it would take me, but I was too in love to think about my future.

We both got down. He was looking very happy and excited today. Good for him.

He ran in, while I stood near the stairs, trying to peep in through the window panes.

I saw that tall guy, Jimin's dance instructor, talking to him. I also saw Jimin hugging him tight while he patted his hair.

Probably, everyone in the world was lucky except me; I sighed.

The two figures disappeared into a room. I turned back too and it was time to go to work.

As soon as I did, I saw a huge black car rolling in.

_~ Jungkook's POV ~_

Soon, our black car drove into the garage of Waltz. Now that I thought of it, it had probably been more than 10 years since I visited this place. Since then, it has grown a lot, enough for me not to recognise it.

My mother had always been the only one in the house to be concerned about the dance studio, and father was there just to support her.

As for me, I had never paid a minimum heed to it, and then when I moved to Seoul, I almost forgot about it, except for the times when mom used to call me up and share her excitement about how great Waltz and its team was doing.

Now as I looked at the tall building standing highest in the locality, shining brightly in the morning sun, suddenly my heart filled up with pride and respect for mom. I had never been a mother's son, I liked to be with my friends, in my own world more, but now I was so happy for her, so happy that she dared to come up all the way to Korea from India, dared to carry her dreams too, and dared to succeed. Hats off to her.

A sudden jerk on my head disturbed my stream of thoughts. I looked back. It was Solar noona.

"Isn't it great that eomma succeeded in dragging you to Waltz? See? It is such a nice place, reasons why you should listen to your parents!" she had parked the car already, and I could sense she was in the mood to joke with me.

It was nice to have a sweet elder sister like her. When she first came to Busan to study, she met my mother who had helped her a lot to settle down in the new place. She was an orphan, and since then, she used to call my mother eomma. I was so happy to have her too, as being the only child was sometimes so boring.

I smiled at her in response.

She ruffled my hair. "You have grown up so well, honestly. Now I know why Taehyung couldn't help but fall in love with you." Saying this, she walked in with a loud laughter.

However I couldn't follow her, as my legs stuck to the ground for a moment.

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 5 : Reuninon.**

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~ Jungkook's P.O.V. ~_

However I couldn't follow her, as my legs stuck to the ground for a moment.

_* Flashback *_

"You like him, I mean Taehyung, right?" 

I choked on my beverage at Yongsun's question. The fear which I had been suppressing for months now resurfaced in my mind. I couldn't let her know the truth. My reality would only ruin everything between us. I was scared of losing my elder sister. Noona meant a lot to me. I couldn't afford to lose her now. I decided to lie for now.

"Wh-what are you talking about?" I questioned back with as much sincerity I could muster in my eyes.

Yongsun extended her arm and resting her hand on the back of my palm, she said, "Calm down, Jungkook. You can tell me anything."

I knew she could see right through my stupid attempt. I had always been an open book for Yongsun Noona. And moreover, I was a terrible liar. I understood I would have to confess to her.

I looked down at our hands and almost spoke in a whisper, "Yes, I like Taehyung. In fact, I love him. He means a lot to me, Noona."

The silence in the cafe felt suffocating at this moment. The hustle and bustle of the airport didn't hit my eardrums anymore. I just wanted her to say anything. I hated the quietness.

But soon I felt Yongsun's hand moving away. The loss of touch was the final blow on my shaky composure. I shut my eyes tight as I could sense tears pricking to come out any moment. I was terrified that now she would reveal my truth to my parents. I couldn't face them ever. They would be so disappointed in me. After all of what they did for me, I was letting them down like this. They would surely disown me. They would hate me from the bottom of their hearts.

Suddenly, I felt a pair of arms engulfing me in a hug. I looked up in a flash and in my blurry vision, found the opposite chair empty. I realised Yongsun Noona had walked up to my side and was hugging me right now. I was too overwhelmed to resist my tears rolling down my cheeks.

I mumbled, "Noona, you don't hate me now?"

She pet my hair and spoke, "Shut up, idiot. And also stop being a crybaby. You're still my little brother."

I hugged her back and a little smile spread on my lips. I cursed myself mentally for assuming shit about this person. She also whispered, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. And Taehyung better take proper care of you or else I'm cutting off his balls!"

I pulled away chuckling and whined, "Noona, please!"

She flipped her hair and snickered. As I rubbed off the stray tears on my cheeks, we heard the announcement of boarding our flight. And that was the end of our conversation.

But now as Yongsun mentioned Taehyung again, my fear came back flooding my senses. What if she exposes us before eomma, if not intentionally but accidentally? I would be doomed. I was not at all ready to face eomma with this truth of mine. I couldn't hurt her.

But I couldn't think much as I was pulled out of my trance with someone pulling my hair. It was Youngsun pulling me towards the main building of Waltz.

I cried out trying to free myself from her grip, "Noona, it's hurting!"

Finally she let me go and said, "You better stop zoning out."

I ran my fingers through my disheveled hair trying to set them back in place as I mumbled, "Sorry, I won't."

She turned around and began walking while I followed her like a lost puppy.

I was definitely a lost puppy in Waltz. Eomma had done a fabulous job with her studio. I couldn't be more proud of her. Who knew that a dance studio focusing on Indian traditional dance forms would be so popular in a city like Busan? But eomma showed how far we could go if we had the courage to fulfill our dreams. Waltz was as beautiful on the inside as it was from outside. I gazed at various directions in wonder. The multiple rooms for different forms and with different ambiance were a spectacle. I pulled out my camera and clicked a few pictures quickly.

Soon we were outside the room allotted for Bharatnatyam. Eomma excelled in this form throughout her life. When she performed in those gorgeous sarees and jewellery teamed up with her graceful movements and sharp expressions, no one could tear their eyes away.

The steady jingle of ghungroos with the rhythmic sound of footsteps reached my ears. I was lowkey excited to see eomma in her niche after years.

Yongsun barged into the room and walked up to eomma like the boss while I followed her meekly. Sometimes I doubted if she was the real daughter of eomma and I was an adopted child. They had too much in common when it came to personalities. Maybe that's why eomma loved her even more.

Eomma waved at her and declared a five minute break for the students. As I reached her, the widest possible grin broke out on her face and she hugged me tight. I hugged her back immediately.

"Welcome back to Waltz dear!" she cheered.

We pulled apart as I said, "Eomma, stop saying like this."

She giggled while I rubbed my neck out of embarrassment.

I spoke again, "But sorry for not listening to you and not coming here earlier."

She flipped the loose strands of her long hair which was now tied up in a messy bun and replied, "Now you are realising the worth of my words, huh?"

But the next moment we both were laughing like kids. Finally she asked me to sit on the couch at one end of the room, where Young sun had already booked a seat. Eomma had to resume her class.

I nodded and walked towards the couch. Sitting beside Yongsun Noona, I realised she was texting someone so I left her unbothered. I busied myself in staring at eomma's students.

Although the strength of the class was much less than popular western forms, it wasn't too poor. But the class appeared to be a girls' exclusive class. I knew such traditional forms never appealed boys a lot. But I also knew that if someone would have been interested, eomma wouldn't have hesitated to teach them.

I pulled out my camera and began clicking pictures of the students dancing. They appeared to be surprised by my action but carried on their practice nevertheless. Eomma too seemed to be fine with me clicking pictures, so I continued. 

The dancers moved well in sync. The steady rhythm of the beats and ghungroos along with the intricate hand movements created a nice combination. They were still a lot away from eomma's level of elegance and skill but they weren't disappointing their teacher, I could sense that much. I was pleased that I could click good pictures without much effort on my side. I noticed a few girls stealing momentary glances at me. I ignored them continuously. Sorry girls, I'm taken.

A few minutes later, I sensed some movement on my side so I pulled down my camera and turned towards Yongsun. She stood up with a smile on her face. I followed her line of sight and saw a young guy in an orange hoodie walking in. He probably had the brightest smile in the world ever. He waved at her for a second and walked towards eomma. They talked briefly and then he walked towards us. His smile didn't falter for a second.

He spoke first as he stood before Noona, "Hello, Solar!"

I was surprised at the nickname but stayed quiet. Young sun replied, "Hi, Hoseok. How's your class going?"

"Nice, as usual...Did you go to Seoul yesterday?" he asked.

She pushed back her hair behind her ear and nodded with a smile. "Yes, I did. I went to pick up Jungkook after his graduation," she said. She pointed at me and continued, "Here he is, Mrs. Jeon's son, Jungkook. He graduated high school day before yesterday."

I stood up and bowed before Hoseok with a smile. He seemed to be older than me so formalities seemed a good option.

"Hello, Jungkook, I'm Jung Hoseok. I'm the lead hip hop instructor here and your mother's Sunshine just like her Solar here!" Hoseok greeted me with that big smile as he pointed at Young sun Noona at the end. I realised that those were their nicknames from eomma. I chuckled at his introduction. 

"Hello, Mr. Jung. It's nice meeting you," I replied.

"Oh please, drop the formalities. Just call me hyung," he urged.

I laughed nervously and nodded.

As the other two resumed their conversation, I sat back down on the couch. In between clicking pictures, I glanced at them from time to time. Well, I was just observing. And it helped me get a good weapon to counter Yongsun Noona everytime she mentioned Taehyung from now on. 

I wondered how she couldn't notice that prominent blush on Hoseok's cheeks. She seemed to converse with him just like close friends. But Hoseok definitely wanted her to be more than a friend. 

He looked at Noona the same way I looked at Taehyung. Damn, I miss him already. I didn't know how I could survive without knowing when I would meet him again.

An incoming text alert broke my chain of thoughts. I placed my camera aside and fished out my mobile. The notification made my lips curve into a huge smile.

TaeTae : 

> _Babyyyy, how are you ? I miss you :(_

I unlocked the device and began typing out a reply.

> _Ugh_
> 
> _I Just love you so much_
> 
> _And it hurts so much to be apart from you.._

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	7. Chapter 7

**_Chapter 6 : Pretty Face; Unhappy Mess._ **

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~ Jungkook's P.O.V. ~_

  
_** 2 hours later **_

  
I had crashed on my bed face down after coming back from the studio with eomma and Youngsun. I didn't even fresh up yet. I was too tired, or rather lazy to move an inch. But my mobile started ringing and I groaned to myself.

I stretched my arm to pull the device from the other end of the bed where I had carelessly dropped it before landing myself on the soft mattress. But the name flashing on the screen lifted my mood. I answered the call and greeted, "Hello TaeTae!!"

  
"Hello, Kookie!" Taehyung's deep yet caring voice filled my ears as he continued, "Did you return from your mom's studio yet?"

  
"We just came back...And now I'm so tired," I mumbled.

  
"Kook, stop being lazy and freshen up now," Taehyung ordered like the daddy he was.

  
"Not you, Tae!" I whined with a pout.

  
"Jungkook, get up now and do something productive or else I'm never kissing that pout you're trying to pull off now."

  
"Fine, fine," I grumbled but sat up anyway. I was amazed how well Taehyung knew me. He could tell every detail about me in spite of being hundreds of miles away.

  
I questioned him back, "What productive shit are you doing though?"

  
"I was drawing a bit," he mumbled, the edge of his voice now gone.

  
He was a man of many talents and I could never get enough of him. 

  
"Show me! I want pics," I demanded.

  
"It's not complete yet. I will send you pictures the moment I finish it," he replied.

  
Before I could say anything more, I heard a faint voice calling his name on the other end.

  
He spoke, "Kookie, I gotta go now. Mum needs some help in the kitchen. I'll talk to you later okay?"

  
"Okay and I love you, Tae," I said hurriedly.

  
"I love you too."

  
And the line went dead. I heaved a sigh and leaned on the headboard of my bed. Taehyung was being productive didn't mean I had something productive to do too. I was a jobless potato. Instead I pulled my camera from the nightstand and started scrolling through the pictures I clicked today.

  
I was happy with the quality of the photos. They needed only slight editing before going on my Instagram profile. But all of a sudden, something or rather someone caught my eyes.

  
I zoomed in to the corner of a photo and saw a young blue-haired boy sitting on the floor. He was staring at the dancers in wonder and had a pair of ghungroos in his hand. I had thought there were no boys in the class, so what was he doing there? Given all the time I was present there how could I not notice another male in the room today? I shook my head and focused on the image. The boy looked around of my age. His fair cheeks and the slightly opened mouth made him look like an amazed kid. He had some kind of calm aura surrounding him. 

Who was he? Was he a new student in the class? Will he learn Bharatnatyam from eomma? A lot of questions filled my head and I knew I had to go back to Waltz soon if I wanted answers.

_~ Hoseok's P.O.V. ~_

  
I was sitting all alone in the deserted room of the studio. The time for hiphop classes was over and the students had left already. Taeyong didn't turn up today and texted me that he had caught a cold. I had switched off the bright lights of the place once everyone left. I also saw Solar leaving with Mrs. Jeon and her son sometime back.

  
I was waiting for this isolation since this morning. I needed it. I was not in my own self in today's class and had shouted at my students quite a few times unnecessarily. But I couldn't help it. 

  
I never tried to deny the fact that Jimin was my favourite student. There were a lot of reasons I treasured him. Letting him go was a bittersweet feeling. I was both happy for him and proud that he was willing to take new challenges and risks. His affinity towards experimenting fueled him. I knew for sure that he wouldn't disappoint Mrs. Jeon with his level of dedication and skill. I was excited to see him perform a completely different dance form soon.

  
But at the same time I felt that my class had lost its brightest jewel. Jimin's presence meant a lot to me. It pushed me to improve myself. I know this sounds weird but it's true. An extraordinary student is always a gem for a teacher. Jimin was a born dancer. He gave his everything in every class. Unlike most of the other students, who danced for themselves, Jimin danced for the art. 

Many of my students had joined the class only to look cool and become popular. But for Jimin, dance was a blessing. The only reason he was in my class was that he loved the art with all his heart. The absence of such a sincere student was bound to affect the ambiance. And I couldn't stop myself from rebuking the other students for some insignificant mistakes. Taeyong handled such classes better but unfortunately I didn't have him either today.

Only dance could help me release my unnecessary frustration. I heaved a sigh and fished out my mobile from my pocket. I scrolled through my playlists and finally decided to play "Goodbyes". Keeping the device on my hoodie which I had left on the floor at the beginning of the class, I walked to the center of the room. The dull atmosphere, the darkness wasn't a hindrance to my dancing. In fact I wanted to dance in the dark. 

  
I didn't wait anymore as my limbs began moving on their own accord with the flow of the song. I could feel the music surging through my veins. I stepped with the rapid beats and let my body move on its wish. I didn't plan any particular step sequence. But my hands and legs seemed to know the song by heart. Gradually I could feel the rhythm slow down towards a closing. I too began slowing down my pace. Finally with the ending beat, I collapsed on the floor on one of my knees. I was panting heavily as I tried catching my breath. My full-sleeved t-shirt was sticking to my skin while sweat dripped down my forehead and along my temples. I pushed back my hair to cool down. Maybe I should start using bandanas like Taeyong.

  
All of a sudden, a blunt thudding sound broke the silence of the place. I turned around in a flash and found a silhouette moving away from the door of the room frantically. I didn't waste a single second as I ran towards the figure and grabbed their arm.

  
The person tried to escape from my hold but I gripped tighter and pulled them towards me. The corridor of the building was more lit right now than the dark room. I figured out that it was a male all dressed in black. He was about two inches shorter than me and had a pale skin tone. Right now his pale face held no expression.

  
I questioned in a gruff voice, "Who are you?"

  
He jerked off his hand from my grip with unbelievable force and stuffing his palms in the pockets of his hoodie, he turned his face away from me. "It's none of your business," he replied.

  
He had a deep raspy voice which did not go with his features at all. Although he was pulling off a straight face, his small eyes and fair cheeks were making him look more chubby and soft than intimidating.

  
I cursed myself mentally for thinking useless stuff and retorted, "You are sneaking around my studio like a thief and then you have the audacity to teach me my business! Keep that attitude to yourself, mister."

  
_Well, this stranger didn't need to know that technically this studio isn't mine_.

  
He huffed and said, "Fine, stop lecturing me. I'm... Yoonbin, Min Yoonbin."

  
I smirked and asked again, "So Mr. Min, what were you doing in my studio? You are neither a student nor an employee here."

  
Yoonbin turned towards me and for a millisecond I felt that a fearful expression passed over his features. But the next moment, his passive face was back and he replied, "I was looking for a friend of mine."

  
"Oh, I see. And who is your friend?"

  
"..H-her name is Youngsoo. She is a dance instructor here," he muttered looking down at the floor.

  
My eyebrows furrowed at his words. There was something definitely suspicious with this man. There was no one in Waltz by that name.

  
I cleared my throat and said, "I'm sorry but I think you're mistaken. Are you sure that's your friend's name?"

  
"Uh..uhmm...y-yeah I guess. It's okay, I'll leave first," he fumbled and turned around to walk away.

  
I tried to think hard and suddenly spoke up, "Wait! Are you by any chance looking for Yongsun?"

  
Yoonbin turned around and gave a small nod, "Yes, Yong sun. Sorry I got her name wrong. We haven't been friends for long."

  
"It's okay. But she has already left," I said stiffly.

  
He mouthed a brief 'oh' and walked away leaving me alone to my thoughts on the lonesome corridor.

  
Solar had never talked about any male friend of hers. I doubted if she ever had any. She had come from an all-girls' school. Then who was this Yoonbin guy? Why would Solar hide something from me? We talked about a lot of things always. 

  
I didn't want to think stupid stuff but my brain was rushing to conclusions. Was Solar going out with someone? I felt my heart aching at the image. I just couldn't see Solar with some other guy. And I obviously didn't want to see Solar with some emo guy like Yoonbin. She deserved better. I wanted to stop my thoughts from wandering farther but nothing was working. 

  
I walked back into the dark room. It wasn't a good day for me at all. I wished to forget about the recent events. I wanted to drown in this solitude forever. I camouflaged back with the dull atmosphere as I lied down on the floor and shut my eyes.

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	8. Chapter 8

_ **Chapter 7 : Scared.** _

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~ Jimin's P.O.V. ~_

I heaved a sigh of relief as I crashed myself on my couch. 

What a monumental day it was - the first day of my Bharatnatyam classes. And though it was just one class, I could not only spell the name now, but also mimic the articulate movements of the form. No wonder why Hoseok hyung always kept telling me how incredibly fast I could learn things, especially if its dance. 

To be honest, I wasn't really sure till the very last. Even though my heart pushed me towards my love for this unknown form, something in my brain kept pulling me back, and I could sense the conflict even minutes before the class started. Stepping out of my comfort zone, leaving something I excelled out, moving away from people I was used to, just because a simple attraction I felt towards something, seemed very foolish to me at times. I could not sleep a minute last night as my head was clogged with thoughts like - "Would Bharatnatyam be good for me, especially when I aim at taking up creative arts for my higher studies?", "Father had been so against my love for dance, he always wanted me to be a government official and just could not accept the fact that a smart kid like me would be just a dancer - thankfully Miss Kim, our school Principal could make him agree to let me do what I wanted. But hip-hop was still something I could tell him about...but, bharatnatyam? He would definitely never accept me doing something feminine and foreign", "Am I taking the right step? What if I regret it later?", "How would I blend in the new group of girls? Would they help me to pick up?", "Would Mrs.Jeon be as considerate as Hoseok hyung and Taeyong hyung were?" ...All these thoughts kept me up the whole night, but, thankfully, that was the reason why I could reach the earliest today. 

The only thing that saved me from dying from the confusion was Hoseok hyung's assurance, that he would take me back in the hip-hop class anytime, otherwise I was a bit panicking at this secret move of mine - neither my friends, nor my parents knew anything about it. 

And know at the end of the doubtful first day, I heaved a sigh of relief. Now I was very much confirmed - I did nothing wrong. 

From the very start of the day Mrs.Jeon was very polite and loving to me (as well as to Hoseok hyung) and her tone was so endearing, that it reminded me of my own mother. She patted my head and welcomed me to the class. The few girls who had arrived early were sitting on the floor of the dance studio and helping each other to tie that enchanting jingling thing made of golden balls on their ankles. As soon as I stepped in, they looked at me from the corner of their eyes, maybe, surprised to see a guy in the girl's area, but I was too mesmerized by the shining balls, to look at their faces. It was such an honourable thing, I felt, that one glorious object tied across your ankle was enough to tell the world that you were a dancer. I wished hip-hop had something like that too - like a badge of honour, just like the policemen proudly wore badges on their uniforms. 

I was so elated at the sight, that, then and there, I started planning how to save money from this month's expenses so that I could buy that amazing thing for myself too, and tell the world what my passion was, without using a word. I was so engrossed in my thoughts that I didn't notice that Mrs. Jeon had already caught me staring at the jewellery with enlarged orbs. The sound of her laughter made me turn back. 

"You like that, huh?" she asked me, with a smile. 

I nodded, blushing. 

"So...do you want a pair of ghungroo for yourself?" 

Ghungroo.... 

That was the very first time I heard the name of the object I was so oddly attracted to, and it sounded just as sweet as the jingling sound of the balls did, the very first day. I felt my heart racing and a tried to pronounce it just as she did. 

"Y-yes, I want the ghun-ghunruh..." 

She laughed at my weird pronunciation, but I didn't mind. I knew I would master the name real soon. 

She walked to one corner of the studio and opened the small cupboard. I could see bright red packets inside. She took one of them out and walked towards me as my excitement increased manifolds. 

She took a new pair of shining ghungroo, smaller than the ones the girls were wearing, and did something unexpected. She closed her eyes, touched them to her head, and then to her chest, opened her eyes and handed them over to me with a smile. 

"You won't get ghungroo anywhere in Korea, so it is always me who gifts these to my students on their first days. Don't worry; since you are a newbie, I am giving you the smaller ones, with 25 balls each. And once your feet get accustomed to the weight of the gungroo, and you master the pace of the fast rhythm of Bharatnatyam, I'll replace these with the ones with 50 balls."

She then handed me a document with pictures and some difficult names alongside. 

"These are mudras", she said, "You need to memorize the movements and also their names. I've also added the pronunciation, so even if you find difficulty at first, you'll soon be able to memorize them well. Each of these mudras stand for each of the emotions we feel at different point of life, or objects - be it weapons, or maybe birds and animals - that we need to tell a story. Remember that Bharatnatyam aims at story-telling, to educate people about the holy stories of Hindu Gods and Goddesses through dance. Therefore, your facial expressions, and your mudras should be clean and distinct. I need you to memorize them as soon as possible so that I can proceed to tell you the meanings they hold, and you need to be fast at it, Jimin. Until and unless who know the basic alphabets, you'll never be able to form sentences. After all, Bharatnatyam is a divine language!" 

As soon as her speech ended, I found goosebumps on my entire body. The art of story-telling...telling a story, through dance - it was so new and exciting to me! 

I came out of my bubble and asked her the question I was dying to ask. Thank god I was good at speech, even if it was with people I had just come across. 

"Ma'am...may I ask you", I said politely, "What was that you did with the ghungruh before handing them over to me?" 

She laughed at my question again and I could figure out why Hoseok hyung was so fond of her. That lady always radiated happiness. 

"That was pranaam, Jimin. In India, we Hindus pay our obeisance to the deity with this act of pranaam. Our culture believes that everything we have today has been given to us by God, be it food, or the art of dance. We worship Nataraj as the God of Dance, and we take ghungroos as a mark of his blessing. Thus, the ghungroos are pure to us, and every Bharatnatyam dancer should treat it as a pious object, to be respected. I don't know if I could explain it to you well, because, honestly, nobody cared to ask me about this before you, and now I am happy that Hoseok has gifted me such a sincere student!" 

She ruffled my head in affection and spoke again, "See there", she pointed at a picture I didn't catch the presence of, earlier, "That's Nataraj, my God, and your God too, now. It doesn't matter which religion you follow, because now, your religion will be dance. Since its your first day, I would like you to sit there quietly and watch us as we perform." 

I walked to the corner and sat down near the hanging picture. Soon, I found tears rolling down my eyes. These were exactly the words I wanted to hear all my life! I wanted someone just like me, who believed that dance is a religion, the best of them all, and the fact that Indians worship dance as a God stirred me up. I am so happy I got a ticket to this heaven, I would never let down anyone here. 

I stared at them with wide eyes. The very first thing they did was to do pranaam to the floor. As Mrs. Jeon explained, it was to tell sorry to Mother Earth in case she got hurt from the movements of their feet. Everything about the Indian culture was so polite, decent, soft and respectful, my heart filled with appreciation for it. 

I found myself getting completely absorbed in the performance, and everything else around started fading away. Soon, all that remained in front of my eyes were the Ghungroos, mudras, Nataraj and his devotees and the divine Bharatnatyam. 

The door bell rang and I jumped up from my couch. _Oh God, I had zoned out yet again!_

As soon as I opened the door, I smiled broadly! 

It was Soobin, my classmate! 

Technically, Soobin was much younger than me, but we studied in the same class, as I started school late, and then I also had to take a year drop when father fell seriously ill just before my finals, and I had to rush to Seoul. 

Soobin had come to return me my notebook he had borrowed from me. I welcomed him in. 

  
And after chatting a bit, I could not control but blurt out everything that had happened to me today. 

"Bharatnatyam? What's that?" He seemed confused. 

I explained him everything, and luckily he didn't mock at me for choosing the new form. Instead, he smiled broadly, and said, "Congrats, buddy! I am so proud of you! It's always the best to do something out-of-the-box, and Bharatnatyam is so much more rare than hiphop!! I know you'll soon be the best at it too! Fighting!" 

_** Next Morning **_

  
Thankfully, I could get up just at time, today as well. Two days in a row ...that's a whole new record! 

I got myself all cleaned up and ready to go out. 

I walked down the alley with a cheerful smile, all hyped up. I could sense I was walking faster than the other days, but never mind. I love getting window seats anyway. 

Suddenly, my pace reduced to zero, and I started sweating. I could see black figures in front of me, and everything about them told me I was in a trouble. I knew them very well, and their eyes were enough to tell me nothing was going right here. 

~ _Jungkook's P.O.V. ~_

  
"So tell me Kookie, are you cheating on Taehyung for some girl at the Bharatnatyam classes?" I chocked on air at this unusual question Yongsun threw at me. 

"ARE YOU KIDDING? STOP IT!" I yelled back at her. 

"Oh stop, you're always too afraid. Eomma has her earphones plugged in! She can no way listen to my sweet soft voice!" 

"Sweet soft voice! But what if she does?" I scoffed in anger and then turned back to see that she was right.

Eomma was peacefully sitting on the back seat of the car listening to music. But Youngsun could in no way understand my agony ever! 

"You didn't answer the question though", she said without removing her eyes from the steering. 

I pulled her hair in response. "What made you think that? I can never cheat on him!"

"Then what has happened to you? I can't believe that you, the Jeon Jungkook who could never care less about dance actually came up himself and asked eomma to take him with her? Am I dreaming?" 

"Oh noona, how many more times do I need to tell you? The last pictures I uploaded on my profile got a lot of likes. So I thought of taking more!" 

"Really?" Yongsun's tone was enough for me to know that she wasn't satisfied with the answer. However, I loved it how she knew me so well and could exactly tell when I was lying. 

I wasn't going to Waltz for the pictures; it's not that there wasn't any other place in Busan for me to click pictures. All I wanted was to know about that guy I spotted in the picture, the way he was looking at the dancers, all engaged and impressed, I could not believe a guy could be that engrossed in a dance form I had seen only women perform, all my life! 

I could have asked mother, but I was always so scared. What if my curiosity about a guy proved to be enough for her to know that my sexuality wasn't straight? No no...I could never risk that! 

We soon reached our destination and I jumped out of the car. Both Noona and Eomma laughed at my excitement. 

I rushed in, I couldn't wait to quench my curiosity any more! 

_** Three Hours Later **_

  
_Alas!_

Nothing turned out to be as I had expected. 

For some reason, Jimin (I could figure out the name of the guy as it was repeated so many times today) did not show up today. 

Eomma was furious, and knowing how scrupulous she was about Bharatnatyam, it wasn't unexpected. 

"How dare he miss classes on the very second day?!" She kept repeating it. She even sent for Hoseok and shouted at him, telling him that she initially thought he had sent a great student to her, but she was all wrong. 

Hoseok looked so miserable that I could not even look at him. He kept assuring her that being late was Jimin's only weakness, and he would show up in no time! But ultimately when the classes ended and Jimin still didn't turn up, mother shouted so much that Solar noona had to rush out from her pole dance classes to calm her down. 

What a miserable day! 

Soon the classroom was empty. It was only me and Hoseok. 

"I would wait here for Jimin, Mrs.Jeon. Something tells me he'll come. I want answers from him. I ain't letting him go this time!" Hoseok had told mother with red eyes. He looked so angry, I failed to relate him to the jolly guy I met yesterday. 

"Eomma, you have scolded Hoseok hyung a lot!" I whispered at her after Solar noona had calmed her down and had returned to her own classes, "I'll stay with him to give him company; he looks so sad!" 

  
And thus, here we were, waiting for Jimin. 

We both got busy with our phones, but the silence of the room was getting uncomfortable. 

So I gathered some courage to start the conversation. 

"Hyung, what form do you teach?" 

He looked better now, and I felt as if he was rather waiting for the question. He went on to speak about his passion. His smile was really so warm! No wonder why everyone called him 'the sunshine.' 

Suddenly, he dropped the conversation in the middle of it and rushed out. I could soon realise the reason of it. Solar noona had just come out of the pole dance room. 

"They look so good together," I chuckled as I clicked a quick snap of them talking. 

Then for hours (it was actually minutes probably), I scrolled through this and that in my phone and camera. What a long and tiring wait it was! I was almost about to lie down on the floor and fall asleep! 

I looked up at the sudden sound of footsteps. Was Hoseok hyung back? 

I was surprised to see I was wrong. 

Instead, there was a blue haired boy, with plump lips, swollen eyes and rose cheeks, staring at me with utter surprise - the face I had been waiting for! 

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	9. Chapter 9

**_Chapter 8 : Faces or Masks._ **

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~Yongsun's POV ~_

From the very start of the day I had a feeling that the day was not going to go well, I was having an ominous feeling since the break of dawn. And I was proved right again....maybe I should leave my job and start researching on astronomy... 

That Jimin guy, or whatever his name was, caused a lot of commotion in Waltz. How could someone miss classes the very second day? _Kids these days_...they are never serious about anything! I knew that Jungkook probably felt that Eomma had over-reacted, but as an instructor myself, I saw no fault in her reaction.

It was natural to get angry, but I had to rush, leaving my classes behind, to calm her down. Anyway I could not take the classes regularly, owning to the fact that Mr. Jeon relied on me so much that he used to assign all kinds of difficult work ever. 

But I was thankful that my students were at least regular, no matter how irregular their instructor was. 

My friends sometimes used to tell me that compared to the salary I got, working for both Mr. Jeon, that is Coffee Mug, and Mrs. Jeon, that is Waltz, was way too much. But the relationship I had with the Jeon family was not something that could be measured in terms of 'more and less'. 

After both of my parents had died, I eloped from my house at Seoul and came to Busan. I always felt that I was a burden to my other family members who had to take care of the orphan child; though they said nothing, but their actions were enough. And when I came to Busan, as a student who had just graduated, Mrs.Jeon was like a life-saver to me. She gave me a place to live in, not one but two jobs, lovely students, popularity as a pole-dancer, and most importantly a family I could call mine. And as Jungkook was in Seoul all these years, Mrs.Jeon depended on me as much, or maybe more, than I depended on her. 

I extended the classes by thirty minutes today. Honestly, Waltz was like a paradise to me, and that one long thin pole of steel was my world... 

After all of my students had left, I slowly came out of the room. I quickly checked my phone to see if there were any messages and I got the very expected one, which brought a smile and a slight blush on my face. I was about to type the reply when I caught a tall figure literally running to me.

Seriously...Hoseok was so funny sometimes! 

Jung Hoseok was a real artist, and I couldn't respect him more for that. You just couldn't take your eyes off him when he danced, and I had never seen something as enchanting as his performances were. I also envied him, a little bit, for that maybe, but mostly, all I had for him was respect and admiration.

  
I smiled and waved, "Hi!" 

He smiled back. We both loved smiling a lot, and maybe, that's why our nicknames matched! 

"Please don't mind about whatever Eomma has told you...when she gets too angry, she sometimes loses her senses..."I said, trying to make sure that he was not hurt after the rebuke he had received at the Bharatnatyam classes. 

He smiled and said, "I didn't mind!" 

I knew he wasn't lying. He loved Eomma a lot. 

Then after conversing on this and that, he suddenly dropped a question completely out of context... 

"Solar, you had studied in an all-girls school, right?" 

"Y-yes..?" 

"Then you are not likely to have any male friends, right?" 

I was taken aback, what kind of question was that? I felt a bit offended, but I controlled it with a smile and said, "Why are you suddenly asking me this?" 

His smile faded away, and he looked rather angry. 

"Because last night, there was a guy, all dressed in black, who came to me and was asking about you!!" 

"What?" 

"Yes. His name is Yoonbin. He said he is your friend!" 

"But..." I tried to think and then replied, "I know no Yoonbin!" 

"Exactly!" his smile re-appeared, "That's what I am saying, right? You have no male friends!" 

  
"Just because I don't know a certain guy doesn't mean I have no guy friends!!" 

"But you had never told me that you were friends with guys?" 

"What do you mean? Why would I tell you?!" 

"That means you have lied to me!" his eyes grew redder, "You have guy friends. And you probably also know Yoonbin..." 

I lost my control this time. _Yes, I respected him, but who was he to ask me such questions?_ That too with a serious look...as if he was my guardian! 

"Stop it! Why are you interrogating me like that? Why am I supposed to tell you who are the ones I am friends with? Who are you to be concerned about my friends circle? That's none of your business!! I hope you know, just because we smile at each other every day, we aren't that close."

  
I realized my voice was a bit too loud, so I lowered it and said, "And for the last time, I do not know any Yoonbin!!" and walked away huffily. I had never imagined Hoseok would get on my nerves like this. I should probably stop smiling at everyone I knew! 

_~ Jungkook's P.O.V. ~_

The face I had been waiting for had finally appeared before me! 

  
I stood up promptly in excitement, but he looked rather calm. He just stared at me with a great deal of surprise in his eyes and then fixed them to the floor. I could guess he was pretty absent-minded and sense that something was definitely wrong with him. 

  
But I had neither the intention, nor time, to find out what bothered him. I just wanted to ask him a few questions and satisfy my curiosity. 

  
Why would someone, that too, a guy who had nothing to do with India, suddenly be so excited to learn something mostly girls did? Why was he daring and risking so much? 

  
But all the questions I had framed in my mind jumbled up...I was already so nervous just to introduce myself! I hated this habit of mine, wish I was a little less awkward and did not hesitate so much to talk to strangers! After all, this innocent looking short guy wouldn't kill me, would he? 

  
I stared at him blankly, rehearsing how I should approach him, while he stood staring at the floor, sniffing. 

  
There was complete silence in the room. 

  
"H-h-hi!" My words finally broke through the silence. 

  
He looked up, his eyes were too angelic and pure to be earthly. 

  
"Hi!" I repeated. He looked too shocked to comprehend everything. Seriously... what was so wrong with him? He didn't reply and silence filled the space again.

  
Oh lord, this was much more awkward than anything else in my entire life! What should I do next? 

  
I finally decided on how to start the conversation. 

  
"You..." Suddenly, a known music resonated in the empty room, interrupting me. I felt my cell phone vibrating in my pocket, and took it out. It was a call. In fact, the most desired call of my life I did not want right now. 

I stared at the screen for a bit, and rejected it. _Sorry Taehyung_ , but I needed to talk to this guy standing in front of me now. 

"Y-you are Jimin?" 

He nodded silently. 

"I am Jungkook. Jeon Jungkook." I let out my hand to greet him. 

Either my words were reaching him quite late, or he was malfunctioning. 

After I waited awkwardly for a moment with my hand let out, he finally (Thank God) reached for it and we made a handshake. 

"Nice to meet you. I am Park Jimin." 

Even though he was looking at me, it felt like he wasn't really looking at 'me' but his mind was somewhere far off... 

After few more minutes of stifling silence I knew I had to give up. All my efforts were wasted, but I wanted to avoid this guy and the conversation for now. 

"Hoseok hyung is waiting for you outside, you did not meet him?" 

He swayed his head to say no. 

"Okay I will call him..." and I walked out fast. 

"Thank you." I looked back at the unexpected reply. His voice sounded hoarse, but it was raspy. As for now, knowing his full name was enough for me. 

As soon as I walked out, I saw Hoseok hyung. But he stood still, stoned, his smile had disappeared. I scratched my head...the day was weird. Why did everyone look so upset today?

I informed him that Jimin was inside. It looked like he just came out of a trance and rushed in. Maybe I could see a small glistening drop of tear on the corner of his eyes, but again, it was none of my business. 

I rushed out of Waltz and sat on one road-side bench. I took out my phone. The missed call notification showed up. I knew I should call Tae back, but I was more excited to do something else. 

I tapped on the blue 'F' icon. Finding people has become a lot easier these days, thanks to the social networking sites. 

It, however took me a bit of time to find out the right Jimin, there were lots of them. And when I did, I didn't regret my efforts. 

Park Jimin...damn... his looks were no joke! 

Today his eyes were rather swollen, cheeks puffed up, and his nose had a tint of red. It looked like as if a dark pall covered his entire face and probably that's why I couldn't figure out... 

I couldn't figure out that this guy was this handsome? Honestly I never desired to check other boys out because Taehyung's looks were breathtaking enough to have my eyes fixed on his well-sculpted face forever. But Jimin was different...a different kind of handsome...rather beautiful. 

His eyes were so deep, that it seemed like he could stare straight into my soul even from the picture. And the little nose..the lips...the blue hair...the face altogether... I found myself zooming his profile picture as much as I could and staring at it like a fool. 

I had never seen someone look this prefect, too perfect to be real. He was very very photogenic I must say, something I could not explain happened to my photographer heart. 

I did not hesitate to click the 'Add Friend' tab. Hopefully he would remember me and accept the friend request. 

I scrolled down, not really sure of my intention. Was I attracted to his pictures...or did I want to know more about him? God knew...maybe both? 

Suddenly I saw a few tagged posts, which were rather unexpected. Now I could probably guess what was wrong with Jimin today. 

_~ Taehyung's POV ~_

  
I sighed. Distance really sucks. 

I had always read about the long distance relationships in webtoons, films and novels, honestly, sometimes it felt like the authors made it look like a bit too sad than it actually was. Now I knew that the pain of distance between you and your loved one is actually much much more than what they showed. 

I was still okay, because I knew that we had to part our ways, physically, and I had prepared myself for that well. But after whatever had happened today, I could feel a sharp prick on my heart. Yes, distance reduces your value; no matter how romantically people used to speak of memories, you are more important as long as you are in front of his eyes. Memories are likely to fade away in the course of time. 

This is how it was with him, Jungkook, but for me, I was missing him miserably with every breath I took. His hands on mine, his fingers playing with mine, his eyes staring at mine, his figure disappearing in my arms, the times we used to study together, laugh together, cry together, walk, eat, sleep together and also the small delicate things about him - his warm breath, his heartbeat, his delicate smell, the softness of his hair and the warmth of his smile...everything. 

Distance really sucks. 

This was the first time Jungkook did not answer my call. No, I was not doubting him, I knew very well that he genuinely loved me, but I was afraid that something more important was likely to enter his life, more important than his boyfriend. 

At times I cried over these thoughts, at other times I rebuked myself for over-reacting. He was probably busy with his family, and it was just one phone call! But I ended up checking the phone every other minute to see whether he had atleast dropped a text. But there was none. 

The problem was...I was lonely. Father was always busy with his business, mother with her boutique. Jungkook atleast had his sister Youngsun to play pranks on, but my elder brother was miles away... 

I stared at the photo on my wall.

These days, I missed Namjoon hyung a lot! 

We both had a thing for art. I spent hours listening to music and painting, while hyung was too much into historical stuffs, and also wrote lyrics during his free time. However, the later was just a secret between us, and I was his only critic. But all I could conceive from his words was that...the man was romantic as hell! And maybe that's why I was like this too...hopelessly romantic. 

Namjoon hyung was presently researching on Indian history in some state of India I wasn't really sure of. He was a brilliant student, a child prodigy, so mother let him do whatever he wanted to. On the contrary, I was never that bright, so I was likely to inherit my father's business. 

I wished I could come to Daegu a bit earlier, so that I could leave for India with hyung. Mother would never let me go that far all alone, no matter how much I wanted to. 

And here I was sitting all idle, waiting for a phone call... 

Suddenly, my only cause of happiness jumped on my lap. 

Yeontan, my puppy. 

I petted him with all my love, felt the softness of his furs against my cheeks, I literally ended up cuddling with him... 

But that cuddle...reminded me of Jungkook even more! 

I sighed. _Distance really sucks._

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 9 : Passion And Pain.**

_✧༺♡༻✧_

_~Hoseok's P.O.V. ~_

I stood still like a wax statue on the corridor of Waltz as I saw my source of sunlight walking away. No, not mine. Solar was right, she was never ' _mine_ '. We were nothing but friends. Rather we were colleagues working at the same place. It was stupid of me to think that she had the same feelings for me.

I knew I was being insensible while asking her that stupid question about Yoonbin. But I still couldn't erase Solar's face from my mind. I had never seen this much of anger on her beautiful face.

She had always been the synonym of 'lovable' for me. But today she snapped at me for just one question. I knew I had crossed the line. As I thought about my words, I realised they sounded really unethical, which shouldn't be the case between two professionals. I should have rephrased my question. Maybe I should really start thinking before speaking. But I never saw Solar as just my co-worker ever. If nothing else, I had considered her my friend.

And probably I lost my only friend in Busan. I could feel my eyes getting wet at the thought but I couldn't rub them off as my limbs stayed stiff as if they were made of some metal. 

What did I even ask from Solar? I just wanted her to understand my feelings and return them.

The way she always smiled and seemed happy while talking to me had made me believe that she felt the same way as I did. But I was a fool for thinking so. I hated myself for being that stupid. How could I take her perpetual smile which she gifted to everyone, on every average day as something special for me? Why was I such a fool? 

I was definitely an idiot for thinking how hypnotizing she looked with that livid expression. Solar deserved better than a stupid fool like me. She obviously deserved someone smarter. I didn't realize that drowning in the thoughts of falling out of Solar's good book I was being completely oblivious of a serious issue. 

Suddenly, I felt someone patting my shoulder and had to pull myself out of my trance. I turned around to find Jungkook standing right behind me. I sniffled hurriedly to retrieve my cheery demeanor and asked, "Yes, Jungkook?"

"Umm... J-Jimin has arrived, hyung," he replied. 

I didn't want Jungkook to see my vulnerable phase. 

I cleared my throat before replying, "Okay. Thanks Jungkook for waiting. I think you should leave now." 

Before he could say anything else I walked past him towards the Bharatnatyam classroom. My own heartbreak over Solar could wait. But Jimin would have to answer me today for such a careless behaviour. He had no right to disrespect Mrs Jeon like that. I wasn't bothered about the harsh words I had to hear. But being absent in the class on the very second day was considered a shameful action. Mrs Jeon had always taught us how one should be entirely dedicated to their passion. I didn't expect Jimin to let me down like this. I deserved answers from atleast one person. 

As soon as I stepped into the room, I found Jimin standing a few steps away. His back was turned towards me and it didn't seem that he was aware of my presence. 

I called out, "Jimin."

My own voice surprised me. I had never talked in such a harsh tone with anybody and my heart ached for having to use it on someone as close to my heart as Jimin. 

I prepared myself mentally to lash out at him but as soon as he turned around I couldn't utter a single word. 

Jimin's small stature looked wrecked. His shoulders were slumped down and he didn't look up at me for once. His blue hair was disheveled making him look like a homeless punk. It didn't take rocket science to understand that something was terribly wrong with him. 

As he stayed put at his spot, I moved forward a bit and called out his name again, this time much softly. 

And the next moment I saw him rushing towards me and engulfing me in a hug. Jimin broke down into tears the second his head rested on my shoulder blade. I was stunned. All my thoughts of rebuking him left my mind. Instead I was filled with worry for him. What had happened to him that he was this distressed? 

I immediately hugged him back and coaxed him. Seeing Jimin cry was tearing my heart into pieces. I just wanted the little boy to stop crying. Tears didn't suit him. I brushed his hair with my fingers and poured sweet nothings in his ear helping him to resist his tears and return to the normal pace of breathing. 

After around five more minutes, Jimin seemed to gradually return to his self. I patted his back and whispered, "You okay now?"

Jimin nodded slightly and pulled back, sniffling hard to stop anymore tears pouring out. I took out my handkerchief and rubbed the tear streaks in his chubby face. I wrapped an arm around his shoulder and said, "Let's go to Coffee Mug, Jimin. You really need something warm now and we need to talk too."

He mumbled an 'okay' and began walking with me. He clutched onto my hoodie like a kid all our way to the nearby cafe. Coffee Mug was owned by Mrs Jeon's husband and not everyone in Waltz knew it. I secretly hoped that Solar would be at the main office instead of being at that outlet. 

_~Jimin's P.O.V. ~_

Hoseok hyung walked me to the nearest outlet of Coffee Mug to grab some beverages. I knew he had understood that something was wrong with me the moment I had turned around. 

Sometimes I felt that hyung knew me better than I did. Most of the times, he figured out what I would say even before I uttered a single word. And today I could only tell him about everything that happened. I had no one else this close to me. I thought Soobin was my closest friend but maybe I was wrong. I was certain that it was Soobin who had spitted out the news of my Bharatnatyam classes to our other classmates. Why did he have to do that? I trusted him and he did this to me.

I felt an urge to cry all over again but stopped myself as Hoseok hyung ordered two hot chocolates for me and for himself. 

I did not like the silence reigning at our table. Before our drinks arrived, I tried to apologize to hyung. Even though he had not said anything yet, I knew he was angry at my absence on the very second day. I knew how serious he was about his love for dance. And I really didn't want to let him down like this but with what had happened today I could never get to class on time. 

"I'm really sorry, hyung," I mumbled. 

Without letting me continue, he spoke up, "It's okay, Jimin. We will talk. Let the beverages arrive first."

I nodded and looked down at my fingers knotted on my lap. I could sense that I was holding my breath from time to time but I couldn't stop myself from being anxious. 

Finally after a few more minutes, our drinks arrived. The waiter placed them on the coasters and smiled slightly before leaving us to ourselves. 

I took a few quick sips of the warm sweet drink and finally felt a lot better. Hoseok sipped on his, and spoke, "Now, tell me Jimin, what's wrong?"

I knew there was no turning back. I inhaled deeply and rested my hands on the table before speaking. 

"Some of my classmates are bullying me, hyung," I said. 

Hoseok hyung was naturally upset and fretted out, "What? Why? Why the heck are they bullying you, Jimin?"

"'Cause I'm learning an effeminate dance form, that too of some uncommon foreign country."

"What kind of bullshit is this?" He was clearly exasperated as he continued, "tell me everything, Jimin."

I nodded and began speaking, "They had attacked me this morning...on my way to Waltz...That's why I was late, hyung. They were in no mood to let me go... They p-pushed me to a wall and punched me in the stomach... They called me f-faggot."

I bit my lips hard shut my eyes. I could still sense the pain in my abdomen but I was too scared of the burly guys of my class to be worried about it. How was I supposed to continue school and dance together if this goes on? 

Hoseok hyung placed his hand on the back of my palm and said, "Jimin, first of all are you okay or do you need to go to a hospital? Don't hide anything from me."

I shook my head immediately. I was already being enough of a burden to him. Instead I tried to return to the conversation, "I don't know how to continue in this situation, hyung. They are also attacking me on Facebook...I'm scared, hyung," I mumbled out my real emotions.

Hoseok hyung pressed my palm and shook his head emphatically, "Shh, Jimin! You're brave. I know you can follow your passion...Okay, wait. You said they are bullying you on Facebook, right?"

I nodded silently. He pulled away his hand and fished out his mobile. I sipped on my chocolaty drink which was eventually running cold while hyung scrolled through his cell.

"I have reported the profiles," Hoseok started speaking, "I hope Facebook takes quick action. And about physical bullying, I have an idea Jimin."

I looked straight at him for the first time since I first saw him in the morning. I was overwhelmed about how much hyung cared for me. I was literally no one for him except a student or rather an ex-student now. But he was still devoting so much of his time for me. I spoke with as much sincerity I could muster in my hoarse voice, "Thank you so much, hyung. I'm sorry for troubling you so much-"

He stopped me midway, "Just cut off the crap Jimin. You're like my own brother. I would always do this much for you. But listen to the plan I have for tomorrow."

"Yes, hyung?"

"I will pick you up tomorrow from your apartment. Text me your address. This way you won't have to come alone to Waltz," he suggested.

I couldn't do that to him. Picking me up meant he had to leave his place much earlier than his usual class time. I shook my head and tried to refrain him but without letting me speak, he continued, "I didn't ask for your permission, here. It's my decision. Just wake up and get ready in time. And I will talk to Mrs. Jeon today itself. So don't worry about that."

I gulped and nodded. I knew nothing was going to change on this matter. I could never speak over Hoseok hyung. He might appear soft and cheerful but once he took a decision, no one could change his mind. As I gave in to his adamant nature, his bright smile returned on his visage. I couldn't help smiling back.

However, in between our conversation, neither of us noticed the person occupying the table behind us walking past us and out of the cafe.

_~Yoongi's P.O.V. ~_

I pushed the door of the cafe roughly and rushed out. Cafes weren't really my place but for Jimin I was ready to walk into heaven too, which wasn't my place either. I needed some fresh air desperately before proceeding for the work I had to immediately take up. All my other clients could wait. Jimin's safety was my foremost priority.

I pulled out my pack of cigarettes and put one of those slick white sticks between my lips. Lighting the cigarette, which felt like lighting one's own pyre, I began processing everything Jimin had just told his dance instructor. I didn't spare a single thought on what would have happened if that guy could have recognised me in the cafe. Although I had my facemask on, I had no other option than to pull it down while gulping down the hot beverage. I had to take this much risk for Jimin.

I was already seething in anger hearing everything Jimin had gone through this morning. Deep down, I hated myself. I felt as if it were my fault. Where was I when Jimin really needed me? Why did I fall asleep? Why couldn't I get up early and reach Jimin's apartment before time? I had promised to myself to not let anyone touch my angel. But now I was hella disappointed in myself for failing to keep the promise. I had failed my Jimin.

The smoke wasn't at all helping to pacify my thoughts. I knew I had to do something. Those who had hurt that innocent boy would have to pay for their stupid act. I would make sure that they never show the courage to look up at Jimin again, leave alone lay a finger on him.

I dropped the cigarette butt on the ground and crushing it under my boot, I pulled out my mobile. I knew what exactly I was looking for.

After a few minutes, I logged out of Facebook and dialled a number. It wasn't long before the person on the other side picked up.

"Hello Boss," the raspy voice uttered.

"I've got a new work for you and MB," I began speaking in my ice-cold voice, "you both need to get five schoolboys for me. I am texting you their names. Trace them, get hold of them and bring them to the Gamcheon Alley by 7 in the evening. And do not use guns on them. You can use guns to get them under control but do not shoot."

"Okay, Boss. We got this covered," he replied.

"Fine. This isn't a job to mess up I'm warning you," I trusted these two completely but I still wanted them to know how serious this issue was. I disconnected the call and started texting the names of the assholes.

Being done with the primary work, I turned around just in time to look at the cafe called Coffee Mug and saw Jimin walking out with his dance instructor. I was about to follow them like every other day but a particular thought stopped me. 

I couldn't trust that tall guy's eyesight. The way he rushed out in the dark that day at his studio I wouldn't be surprised if he turned out to be a vampire. I couldn't risk my identity now. Jimin was definitely important to me but so was my own job. I was meant for the world of darkness and it took me my whole teenage life to understand this. Bright dreams weren't for people like us and we were always crafted for the black alleys and shadows. I had been a fool once to think the other way. Since Jimin wasn't particularly alone at the moment, I knew he was safe. 

Watching the two turn at a bend, I brushed off my stupid thoughts and began walking in the opposite direction. 

_//timeskip//_

I stood leaning on a black SUV parked at the far end of the Gamcheon Alley. Pulling out my mobile, I checked the time. It was 6:53 pm. It wouldn't be a long wait anymore.

After a few moments, I heard faint sounds of grunting and dragging coming from a distance and gradually their intensity increased. And soon, two tall silhouettes appeared before me with five others alongside. 

I huffed and returned to a standing posture. "Good job, MB and JN," I appreciated them lowly like every other time. I always used codenames for them.

MB's husky voice reached my ears, "All for you, Boss."

I smirked and focused on the five scumbags before me. I could feel my suppressed rage building within me all over again. _How dare they touch my boy?_

As I walked up to them, one of the kids almost began whimpering. He folded his hands before his chest and begged, "Please let us go...w-we have no idea who you are. We have nothing to do with y-you." 

But at the same time, another of them hissed through his pain, "Argh, Choi shut the fuck up! We don't beg before anyone."

I snickered at the latter. Grabbing his shirt collar, I hissed, "That's the spirit I like, brother." He was bit taller than me but so were most of my victims. And being taller didn't mean one could intimidate Min Yoongi.

Without wasting a second, I punched his face as my stone-studded rings engraved permanent marks on his perfect cheeks. He groaned in pain but couldn't fall back as I still had him by his shirt. I could hear some footsteps charging at me but immediately they changed into groaning and more punching sounds as I knew MB and JN had begun their work. The school kids had surely underestimated us by our number and it made me want to laugh.

The boy tried to hit me back but with my swift movements, it was simply impossible for him to lay a finger on me. He had no idea against whom he was struggling. I kept on punching the dickhead and once he was flat on the ground, groaning and wriggling in pain, I landed a few kicks on his side. I knew they were desperate to know the cause of such a terrible attack on them and I decided that it was the perfect time.

I stepped on his torso and as he screamed out in intolerable agony, I bent down and grabbed his cheeks. Turning his face towards me, I saw fear overcoming pride in his eyes. I stared directly into his dark orbs and sneered, "Can you feel pain now, you motherfucking asshole?...Get one thing clear. Next time you dare to touch Park Jimin or even think of laying a single finger on him, you won't be able to go home to your eomma. Explain this to your fucking stupid followers or the next time I see any of you near Jimin, all of you are fucking dead."

What I didn't hear while being focused on the moron lying under me was the footsteps of someone running and somehow it had missed the attention of both of my men as they were busy handling the other boys. But four against two is a bit hard to manage no matter how strong we are. We knew we will win at the end but the whole of the fight wouldn't be the same.

I had to let go the boy's face as a sharp blade scratched along my right side. I groaned in the stinging pain and grabbed the side of my torso. And looking up I found JN jostling another guy to the ground as a blood-stained knife dropped out of his grip. MB kicked the boy in front of him and twisting the arm of another who tried to stop him from reaching me, he rushed towards my side. Sometimes I wondered how that short guy had so much strength in his comparatively dainty hands. But MB was cut out for this dark world although it did not fall in sync with his physical features.

He forcefully removed my hand from my wound and hissed in his husky voice, "Boss, get out of here, now." 

Blood was oozing out from the wound, which was deeper at one end than the other. My damaged hoodie and t-shirt were soaking in the thick red liquid as they stuck to my pale skin. I understood he was trying to stab me but failed as JN had pulled him away in time. What the fuck do these school kids carry on them?

But I wasn't running away like a coward. I had to fight for Jimin. I shook my head desperately and pushing MB away I tried to stand back on my feet. "No, MB. I'm not leaving until all of them are wriggling in pain on the ground."

Only two of them were still trying to fight back while the other three seemed to be either unconscious or completely drained. MB pushed me away from the end of the alley and ordered, "NO, YOU ARE LEAVING NOW." 

JN joined in as he punched that pretty face and shouted at me, "We got this under control, Boss. Leave now."

I sensed my breathing turn heavier with every passing second and I knew I had to give up. I trusted MB and JN enough to complete the rest of the work. I huffed a 'fine' and began walking away. MB returned to kick the shit out of the other boy.

I was almost dragging myself out of the alley as my legs were shaking. 

I turned around to look at the struggling silhouettes for the last time and I could see JN and MB bringing them down. It wouldn't be long before the work would be over.

But I hissed at my own pain. I pressed the cut hoping that the blood flow will slow down but it was all in vain. I cursed at myself as I felt my eyes threatening to shut down any moment and my lanky figure almost stumbled down with every step. Fuck my life. Why did I have to ignore my body so much?

I wasn't sure how long I would be able to carry myself. I dragged myself upto the main street which was now mostly dark with only a few streetlights here and there. I couldn't spot anyone with my half-shut eyes. But I sensed some light footsteps.

I couldn't think anymore as I knew I had to take help of whosoever was coming down the road. I just hoped it wouldn't be some police officer. I didn't care anymore at the moment though.

I staggered a few steps more and finally saw a tall man walking in my direction. Seeing my bleeding figure under one of the lampposts, he rushed towards me and asked in an anxious tone, "Hey, what has happened?...What the fuck?! You're bleeding like hell."

I muttered, " _H-help me please. B-but don't t-take me to a hospital_..."

I looked up at him with as much sincerity as I could muster on my perpetually passive face. I hoped he would listen to me. My eyebrows furrowed once I got a proper glimpse of the stranger's face. It seemed I had seen him earlier but I couldn't recall anything with the burning pain. 

I mumbled a final 'please' before collapsing on the man who was staring at me in confusion and worry. And as my eyelids dropped down, I let the darkness engulf me.

_✧༺♡༻✧_


	11. Chapter 11

_**Chapter 10 : Getting closer** _

✧༺♡༻✧

_~ Jimin's P.O.V. ~_

Hoseok hyung dropped me at my building and headed back for the bus stop. I walked into the dark apartment complex, my footsteps being the only sound breaking the silence. The landlord should fix the lights of the staircase already. The residents have been requesting him for long.

Anyway I reached my apartment using my mobile flashlight and unlocked the door. Walking in, I shut the door behind me and slid down on the floor right there. I was mentally exhausted too much to carry myself to the bedroom. Today had been frustrating but hopefully tomorrow will be better. And hyung had promised to pick me up so I wouldn't have to worry about the bullies.

Hoseok hyung had reported their profiles already. I fished out my mobile to check if Facebook was still showing their profiles. As I opened the app, a flood of notifications overflowed my screen. Most of them were comments on the earlier posts which I had been tagged in. I ignored them completely as I didn't want to relive that trauma of the morning. Instead I started searching for the brats of our class and to my relief, their profiles had been removed.

Another notification caught my sight suddenly. I had a new friend request waiting for my response. I was surprised. In between all this mess on my timeline, who would send me a friend request? However, I didn't hesitate long to click on the icon, which showed the name "Jeon Jungkook" beside the respond buttons.

Jeon Jungkook. Did I know this person? I tried to storm my brain to recall where I had heard such a name. I clicked on the name and the person's profile came into my view. The profile picture ended all my confusion.

It was Mrs. Jeon's son who came to meet her on the day I first joined the Bharatnatyam class. That day I had just noticed him from afar. He was busy clicking pictures on his camera. He looked quite deft in the work. In the profile picture, he was smiling brightly at the camera. He didn't get his mother's features much but their eyes glinted the same way when they are happy. I could tell this much from the one day I met Mrs. Jeon herself.

But why did Jungkook send me a friend request? I felt confused as I couldn't figure out the reason of such a gesture especially after seeing me in that pathetic way. I recalled he was the one in the room when I entered today.

I decided to accept it after hesitating for five minutes. Accepting a friend request wouldn't hurt me more than my present conditions. And if he shows any inappropriate behaviour or start affecting my mental health, there was always an option of blocking him.

I clicked the 'Accept' button and almost immediately a message popped in my messenger. It didn't take me more than a millisecond to know that it was from Jungkook.

**Jeon Jungkook**

_Hi, I'm Jungkook._

_Remember me?_

My fingers hovered over the keypad before finally typing a reply.

**Park Jimin**

_Hello, Jungkook._

_I do remember you. :)_

**Jeon Jungkook**

_I'm being a bit straightforward here cuz i dont wanna beat around the bush._

_But are you okay now?_

_I saw the posts on your timeline although they are gone now_

_And you didnt look well well at the studio. So i just wanted to check once._

_Hope you don't mind_

_U can not reply if this makes u uncomfortable. I understand_

I let the flow of messages end before I could start replying. I was amazed at how much he had noticed me. Why would he even do that? And how come he knew my name already and found me out here?

Oh right! He was present when all the disruption was occurring in Waltz due to me. Hoseokhyung was telling me how angry Mrs. Jeon was at me for missing class on the very second day.

Anyway, I had to reply to Jungkook now. It felt nice to be honest to see some stranger caring for me.

**Park Jimin**

_No its okay. Im better now. Thank you for asking.  
_

_And I really like Bharatnatyam. pls dont judge me for the choice_

My insecurity was creeping up now. Maybe even Jungkook looked down upon effeminate boys. After all he was from one of the best schools in Seoul and considering his physique, I could easily understand that he hit the gym regularly. But his reply baffled me for a moment.

**Jeon Jungkook**

_Hey why do u think like that? I will never judge someone's choices_

_In fact im happy that u decided to join mom's class._

_Don't get me wrong. I only want to be frnds with u._

**Park Jimin**

_It's okay u dont need to clarify urself  
_

_and yes i wud luv to hav a new frnd_

I didn't know if I was ready to call some stranger a friend again after what Soobin did to me. Somewhere deep down I wanted to type 'only friend'. But Jungkook didn't have to know all the petty details of my life on the very first day of our interaction.

**Jeon Jungkook**

_Same here!_

_And pls don't giv up so quickly for those bullies. u dont hav to listen to them. just ignore their taunts and trolls. Mom was angry today ik but I cud understand from her words that she really likes u. She thinks u hav a lot of potential. She will definitely allow u in class tmrw._

_U r coming tmrw ryt?_

**Park Jimin**

_Yes I will. I cant miss anymore classes_

_I hope she gives me another chance. and thanks for those words. I too don't wanna giv up already_

_Bharatnatyam is such an interesting dance form_

**Jeon Jungkook**

_Oh yes it is. Mom says its one of the hardest dance forms of India_

**Park Jimin**

_really??!!_

_It looks so different from western forms. its very intricate and i like the details_

**Jeon Jungkook**

_Wow! u really like it so much!_

**Park Jimin  
**

_Yeah, u can say that_

_If u dont mind i gtg now_

**Jeon Jungkook**

_Yeah yeah sure  
_

_Its okay_

_Bye. See u tmrw. :)_

**Park Jimin**

_Bye :)_

I closed the app and stood up from the floor. Leaving my bag and mobile on the couch at a corner of the room, I walked towards the washroom to freshen up. I only wanted to go to bed now but I couldn't miss dinner also.

Quite unexpectedly, I failed to fall asleep even after trying hard for the past 30 minutes. I thought I was tired, but as soon as my head hit my pillow and I closed my eyes, uncomfortable thoughts began creeping up on my mind. The morning had been so horrifying for me; I guess the night was going to be equally pathetic.

Giving up, I reached out for my mobile. A new notification! _Again?_

To my relief, it was Mina texting me on my number. She was from our class, and was probably well-aware of what had happened on Facebook. She was a nice person, and we were pretty close too. I tapped on the SMS notification.

**Mina**

_Bro Who's this Jungkook guy?_

I was taken aback for a second. She knew Jungkook? _But how?!_

**Me**

_Where did u hear about him??_

I got an instant reply from her.

**Mina**

_U don't know? He commented strongly against all the bullies, With long paragraphs saying why and how much they were wrong. He seemed so angry, as if he wanted to punch their faces lol. I thought he's your friend, cuz he was supporting u so strongly... I just happened to check his profile. Man he's hot!! Is he single, by any chance?_

I laughed at Mina's text. She sounded really desperate. But what was it with Jungkook? It was really odd that he was so angry on them just because they bullied me, who is practically a stranger to him! He also sent me a Friend Request, and tried to comfort me over the direct messages...

No, I was probably overthinking. Just because Soobin broke my trust, it didn't mean I had to be suspicious of every guy I met.

I replied a quick, "I really know nothing about him" to Mina and tried to lie down one more time.

However, before putting the mobile down, I just absent-mindedly searched the name "Jeon Jungkook" on the Facebook search bar. The profile popped out in less than a second. I had already seen his profile picture, I scrolled down to look for more. I did not know what I was doing, I was not sure myself, but I could feel a little spark of excitement inside.

"Man he's hot!!" I could really hear Mina saying it in my mind. Well, nobody would disagree.

The very first set of pictures that caught my attention was from his recent graduation ceremony. Gosh, he looked so cute and happy that it made me blush. How could someone look this fine in a simple school uniform? And he remembered to thank all of his teachers and friends in the post...that's really so sweet of him!

I scrolled down for more; I could feel my hunger already. His profile was almost flooded with pictures he captured with himself. They were all so aesthetic, I could definitely tell that this guy was a gifted photographer. I was stunned at his creation, but as I proceeded further I realised, not only photography, this guy was the best at everything he did! Baseball, Taekwondo, Guitar, Swimming, Boxing, Painting...how was it possible for one person to be good at so many things? My jaws hit the ground as I stared at each of the pictures for hours, especially at the ones in which he smiled at the camera. Something was very different about his smile; it was too heart-warming to be real...

Thank god, it was not morning before I got back to my senses, I should definitely sleep now. I logged out immediately. However, before closing my eyes, I found asking myself one important question.

Was I, by any chance, attracted to guys? In particular, _this Jungkook guy_? He seemed to be so strong yet soft, and he spoke less, but he was so sensible, supportive and kind. Everything about him was oddly so good, he seemed to be excellent at everything, and he looked just like one of our Kpop stars.

I tried to calm myself down. I had never dated anyone yet, and I was always too busy to balance between academics and dance to have a serious crush on someone. But, what if, someday, I realised that I was not like the most other boys; I was more interested in guys? _Would the society, my parents support it? What if they bullied me, yet again, for my choices...?_

I rebuked myself, "Stop, Jimin!! It's time to sleep!!"

_**** Next morning **** _

_~_ _Taeyong's P.O.V. ~_

As I walked into the bedroom after wrapped in my bathrobe after a quick shower, I found Ten still sleeping. Heaving an exasperated sigh, I walked to our bed and pulled away the blanket.

As expected he started groaning while I placed my hands on my hips and ordered him for the umpteenth time, "Get up NOW. I don't want any of us to be late."

He curled up like a cotton ball as he mumbled, "Five more minutes hyung, please."

"Not even one more minute. Just wake up. You said the same thing half an hour ago," I held on to my stern voice.

Ten looked so cute huddling up at one end of the large bed. Frankly, while waking him up every morning, I felt that this person was someone completely different from the one who dominates the bed at night. His duality was sometimes too much to handle.

Falling for him was probably one of the best decisions I ever took in my whole life. I felt blessed that Ten built up the courage to approach me in our college days. I had always been an awkward bean when it came to my love life. It felt hilarious thinking back how many people I let go only because I was too shy to approach them although I had huge crushes.

Ten was different from everyone. We were both music majors in one of the most popular Performing Art colleges of Seoul. I was studying Commercial Music while he was a student of Film Scoring. As our classes were held in the same building, we crossed paths multiple times a day and I often stole glances of him at the canteen. He had a bright never-fading smile. And there was a kind of softness in his features which made him look like a foreigner. Later I came to know he was originally from Thailand but his parents had shifted to Korea.

Probably this crush of mine would have got lost like the others if he didn't occupy the seat next to me in the canteen one day without even seeking permission. I was taken aback but wasn't complaining at all. It didn't take us much long to move from friends to boyfriends. It had been four years since then and now I loved waking up beside him every morning. And as both of our families were settled in Busan, moving here wasn't much of a problem. Building our careers was troublesome but we both made it. As a result, a year ago when we finally came out and decided to move in together, neither of our families could find a valid problem to stop us.

I grabbed his arm and pulled him up to make him sit on the mattress although he continued whining. "Enough Ten. You're getting up now or I'm feeding you only fruits for breakfast," I had to threaten him if I wanted him out of the bed.

"I hate you," Ten mumbled like a sulky kid.

"I love you too, baby," I smirked at him and walked towards the closet to get some clothes. After getting ready, I also had to rush to the kitchen to make something for breakfast before leaving. I pulled out a pair of white jeans and putting them on, I rummaged through my t-shirts and hoodies. I took out an oversized navy blue t-shirt and removing my bathrobe, I put it on quickly as I hated the cold air hitting my skin.

Turning around, I didn't see Ten at his earlier spot. He was probably in the bathroom now. I arranged both of our wallets on the nightstand along with one of his files. He worked at a famous music studio of Busan. They often collaborated with big companies based in Seoul.

I moved to the kitchen. Walking to the fridge, I took out two eggs and some vegetables. Dicing carrots, onions and slicing asparagus, mushrooms, I sautéed them in a pan. I got the eggs in a bowl and began whisking them. Once I was done with that, I put the cooked vegetables in the bowl and mixed the two ingredients together. Soon I poured oil in the pan and started adding the mixture slowly, layer by layer, while folding the fried egg from time to time to make the roll. In a few more minutes, I was done with the cooking part. Placing the roll on a plate, I began slicing it into pieces.

Suddenly I felt a pair of arms hugging me from behind and a warm breath brushed my nape. The fragrance of Ten's shampoo filled my senses but we had no time to move on to some steamy business. I writhed in his hold as I whined this time, "Ten, let me go. Come on, we're going to be late."

"Uff, hyung, stop worrying for once," he mumbled as he started placing butterfly kisses on my nape.

Ten always made me weak and I knew I had to stop him before he goes further or both of us are skipping work today. I wriggled and dropping the knife, I placed my hands on the counter to support myself.

"Please baby. I remember you told me yesterday that you have an important meeting today," I urged.

"We still have enough time, please," Ten whispered as he continued sucking on my exposed skin.

I felt my legs turning jelly as I sucked in mouthfuls of air. He grabbed my waist and turned me towards him in a swift move. The next moment his lips were on mine and I lost all control over myself. I began kissing him back hungrily. We had run out of action for the last two days; blame it on my sudden cold. And it seemed like Ten would make up for all of it now.

My hands slipped into his white t-shirt as I clutched onto his back. His tongue played with mine, trying to devour all the inner corners of my mouth. I moaned at his moves as his fingers slipped into my t-shirt and caressed my skin. I shivered at the cold touch. Ten began rubbing his crotch on mine and I began losing every last bit of control I had on my legs.

He pushed away the knife and the plate to a side and lifted me up on the marble counter. I pulled him closer and played with his perked nipples as our sloppy kisses continued. He grabbed my wrist stopping me from hovering over his smooth skin anymore. He broke the kiss as I whined at his actions. Pecking my pout, Ten flashed one of his sexy smirks making me blush furiously. I looked down to avoid his strong gaze while he pushed up my hoodie and t-shirt and began biting my torso softly. My legs wrapped around his waist but I wriggled and tried to stop him. "Ten, p-please, let me go n-now. I need to set the table."

"Shh, hyung. We have enough time and someone says it needs some attention," he said.

I cursed myself mentally as I realised he was talking about my obvious boner. His lips slowly moved downwards and soon his fingers unbuttoned my jeans. His palm rubbed over my underwear as I threw back my head and closed my eyes in the ecstasy. The food was running cold but I needed Ten to cool me down first.

I moaned as he pulled down my briefs and grabbed my dick. He pecked the tip and looked up at me seductively through his slightly wet bangs. I muttered a 'fuck' and urged, "Stop teasing me idiot."

He didn't need any further instruction, as his experienced lips wrapped around my dick and started sucking quickly. I threw back my head once again while drowning in the pleasure of his swift motions. His other arm was continuously moving along my thigh and I couldn't stand the delirious feeling building up within me. I needed a release soon. Ten knew me too well and his head started blobbing on my member more swiftly.

When I felt that I was on the verge of my release, however, the mood was ruined by my mobile. _Fuck my life! Who calls someone at this ungodly hour?_

I groaned as I fished out the device from a pocket of my jeans but Ten didn't show any signs of stopping. I was almost declining the call until I saw the contact of the incoming call.

What did Hoseok hyung want at this time? It was certainly a lot early for our class to begin. My fingers clutched onto Ten's hair as I answered the call. It was probably urgent or else he wouldn't have called me now.

"Hello, Hoseokhyung?" I spoke.

"Umm...Hi Taeyong. I'm not disturbing you so early I hope," he replied.

I suppressed my moans with all my might and replied, "N-no no, not at all."

Ten chuckled in between and I smacked his head before returning to the conversation.

"Uh okay. I have a request, Taeyong. It's kinda serious. Please don't say no." Hoseok spoke almost helplessly.

I could never tell him 'no' anyway. "It's okay, hyung. Just say whatever you need."

"Thanks, Taeyong! Really thanks a lot. You need to pick up Jimin for me. I am sending you his address," he spoke in a single breath.

"W-what?" I couldn't hide my shock.

"Please, Taeyong. I know it's a bit of trouble but I really need your help. I got stuck in a work. I won't be able to go to Waltz today," he urged.

"Okay, hyung. I will pick him up. And don't worry about class. I will manage it."

"Thank you so much! Give me a second, I will send his address. And you will have to pick him up in half an hour. His Bharatnatyam classes start before ours," his voice had relaxed already.

I gulped hard and suppressing another moan, I replied, "Y-yeah, no problem. I will have to go n-now."

Ten increased his speed on my cock and I couldn't hold back anymore.

"Okay," he replied.

And I didn't spare a second as I hung up and let out a groan. White spots filled my vision as I came in Ten's mouth. He licked away every last drop of the white fluid not letting it stain my work outfit for the day. I got a sensible boyfriend for myself.

I panted hard while he stood up straight and helped me fix my jeans. Pulling me down from the counter, he brushed away my bangs and kissed my forehead. I caught my breath before I could inform him about the sudden change of plans.

"It is Hoseok, right? What did he tell?" Ten asked.

I pulled away myself to pack our already cold rolls in a container as I replied, "He needs a favour. We need to pick up a student in his place for some serious reason. And for that, we need to leave immediately."

I turned around to face Ten and my eyes involuntarily shifted to his boner stretching the fabric of his trousers. I shifted my gaze to his face and continued, "I promise I will complete this incomplete work tonight."

Pulling him in a hug, I pecked his cheek as his subtle pout vanished finally.

"You have no other choice," his smirk was back.

A text notification on my mobile broke our moment. I pushed Ten lightly towards the door and said, "Get ready. We are leaving in five minutes."

He smiled and rushed to our bedroom. I checked the text from Hoseok hyung. Shaking my head, I picked up the container and put it in my duffel bag. We could have our breakfast on the way. I brushed my hair with my fingers for the last time before walking towards the main door. As I put on my shoes, Ten rushed out. He had put on a brown jacket and was struggling with our wallets and his file in two hands. I took the wallets from him and let him put on his shoes. I dropped the wallets in our respective bags and in two minutes we were in our white car. Ten started the ignition as I put Jimin's address in GPS. As he drove along the highlighted path, I pulled out the breakfast and began feeding him. He continued urging me to take bites too and I couldn't deny him for long.

As I finished with our breakfast, Ten pulled onto the driveway of an apartment complex. I put back the plastic box in my bag and got down from the car. No matter how easily I agreed to Hoseokhyung's request, my sulky self was trying to express itself on my face. I pulled out my mobile and called Jimin. He answered the call almost immediately.

"Hi, Jimin. I'm here. Come down fast," I spoke as soon as he answered.

"Y-yeah hyung. I'm coming down," he hurriedly replied.

At least Hoseok hyung had informed him about the change. Soon I saw Jimin's small stature running out of the building. I waved at him and tried to present him the best smile I could muster at this hour. Why did classes have to start so early? He waved back at me and as I walked back towards the car, he followed me on my heels.

I got in on the passenger seat and Jimin took the back seat.

Ten turned around and smiled at him while introducing himself, "Hi, I'm Ten."

Jimin smiled back at him and replied, "Hello hyung. I'm Jimin."

I smiled at their interaction but then had to interrupt checking the time on my mobile. "Ten, let's go or he will be late. And it's good that you're on time, Jimin."

The young boy smiled at me and replied, "Thank you for picking me up, hyung. I'm sorry for the trouble though."

"It's okay, man!" I swathed my arm to brush off his unnecessary apology.

Ten started the ignition and we were on our way to Waltz. I checked the time. We had to drop Jimin there within 20 minutes and considering low traffic at such early hours, it wasn't a Herculean task. That would in turn leave me with half an hour to spare to begin with my own classes. I could already feel how happy most of the students would be for being relieved from Hoseok hyung's daily dose of rebuke for being late.

As Ten drove into the parking lot of Waltz, Jimin hopped out of his seat and waving us goodbye, he ran for his class. Frankly speaking, I would miss him in our classes. He had been an amazing dancer always.

Soon, we got a suitable spot and after Ten parked the SUV, we both got out of the car.

I asked, "Can you stay here for another 30 minutes?"

Ten smiled and replied, "Obviously. We had to rush out due to your student. I don't want to reach the deserted studio yet."

A giddy grin took over my features as I ran over to his side and engulfed him in a hug. He laughed and patted my back.

After a moment, Ten pulled away and said, "What should we do now though?"

"Let me show you around," I proposed.

"Sure!"

I pulled his hand and we walked into the main building of Waltz. I pointed out the various rooms allotted for various dance forms to him. Most of the rooms were empty as it was not yet time for the regular classes. The only room which was being noisy was the Bharatnatyam class. Mrs. Jeon always preferred getting done with her form early. She said that early morning was the best time for practice. But she always gave her trainers absolute freedom to decide their own class schedules.

And finally we were in front of the hip-hop classroom. It was still locked and although I had the key, I didn't want to open it yet. Instead I dropped my duffel bag in front of the door and stood by Ten on the sun-lit corridor.

He dropped his file in his bag and placing it beside my bag, he pulled me by my waist. I flushed at his actions and slapping his arm, I whined, "Hey, don't start anything here. People might see us."

He chuckled and replied, "No one is here to see us." It was followed by a quick peck on my lips.

I rolled my eyes and gave up. Ten asked, "You brought your meds right?"

I nodded.

"Take them at the right time. I don't want you to fall sick again," he ordered.

Before I could appreciate his kindness, however, he added, "I can't eat fruits again for breakfast."

"You, dickhead. I hate you," I grumbled and huffed.

He smirked and I knew he was taking his revenge for this morning. I twitched my lips and turned away from him. I could obviously move away from him already but _I wasn't ready to lose his warmth yet._

"Buy me a coffee before leaving for work. I don't know anything," I ordered.

"Okay baby, I will," he laughed his breathy laugh and nuzzled my neck.

As soon as he bought me one from the nearby Coffee Mug outlet, I took a sip, while he kept grinning at me.

And in between all this, we didn't notice someone standing at the end of the corridor.

✧༺♡༻✧


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 11 - Threads Of Darkness.**

_✧༺♡༻✧_

**_~_ ** **_Hoseok's_ _P.O.V._ ** **_~_ **

Hanging up the call, I proceeded to forward Jimin's address to Taeyong. God knows what would have happened today if my colleague didn't exist. Whatever happened last night had made it impossible for me to pick up Jimin or even go to Waltz. And I couldn't risk Jimin getting hurt again.

Being done with the small work, I turned away from the window of my bedroom to look at the person sleeping on my bed. It wasn't a common thing. That twin bed had always been only mine until last night. I lost it to some stranger for the first time and had to sleep on the couch in my own goddamn room. But could I call the sleeping guy a stranger really? I guess I could.

Min Yoonbin, oh no, wait, _Min_ _Yoongi_ was sleeping peacefully on my bed. How the creepy guy from the studio who introduced himself as Solar's friend with a fake name for himself ended up in my home and how I got to know his real identity was a long story.

I huffed and sat on the sofa placed near the foot of the bed trying to fix the pieces of my memory about whatever happened last night.

After dropping off Jimin at his apartment, I wasn't in the mood to return to my apartment yet. The conversation with Solar was still bugging me so I decided to go to a bar. I didn't drink often. I only went for alcohol when the stress became unbearable. And after the fallout with Solar, I could see no other way to calm myself down.

I had been thinking about her for months and yesterday it felt like I lost her forever. Why did I have to be such an idiot and ask her those indecent questions? Now when I looked back, the way I had talked to her last morning was really terrible.

I had chugged down a few shots and walked out of the noisy place. It was quite freezing outside and as it was already late, I gave up the hopes of finding any public transport. I began walking towards my apartment complex and about three blocks away, suddenly I saw a silhouette of a guy dragging himself in my direction. The distance of streetlights from my position made it impossible for me to get a clear view of the person at first. He had his hand pressed onto the side of his abdomen and by his way of walking I could easily understand that the person was injured somehow. I was drunk indeed but not too wasted to understand these simple details.

As I rushed towards the human, he collapsed in my arms, panting heavily. Blood was continuously oozing out of a wound from the side of his torso. I naturally freaked out and was at the verge of losing my composure as I bombarded him with questions. The raspy voice, which I felt I had heard earlier but couldn't think about then, mumbled, "H-help me, please. But don't take me to a hospital..."

Before I could say anything more, the guy looked up at me and muttered a 'please' before shutting his eyes close and letting his body lean on mine. But it didn't take me more than a few seconds to understand why the voice sounded so familiar after I got a proper glimpse of the man's face. It was the same person looking for Solar at Waltz the previous day. _Min_ _Yoonbin_ _._

I was torn apart between the options of bringing him home and treating his wounds and taking him to a hospital for proper treatment. I didn't know if I could trust anything about this guy considering the impression he had created. I didn't want to take his responsibility at first to be honest. But I just couldn't wipe off the image of those dark orbs looking up at me helplessly as his eyebrows scrunched in pain. Why would he avoid a place where he could be properly treated?

I pulled him a bit towards me and removed his arm to get a clear look of his wound. The more I wasted time deciding what to do, the more I would have risked someone's life. And I wasn't that heartless to leave him on his own in that condition. Finally after struggling with myself, I decided to take him home. I could nurse his wound for the time being and he could go wherever he wanted to next morning. He had already fainted in my arms. I pulled him up on my back and began walking towards my home. His body was unnaturally lighter compared to any average person of his height.

A sudden rustling sound broke my chain of thoughts. I looked up at the injured man waking up from a long night's sleep.

He writhed as his face scrunched up in the pain I guess. He opened his eyes a bit and tried to sit up as a groan escaped his lips. I couldn't sit still anymore. I walked to his side and helped him sit up leaning on the wall as his curious eyes were clearly looking for answers.

I moved a step back and asked "So, how are you feeling now, _Yoonbin_?"

He turned to look up at me in a flash and the shocked look I had seen on that face for a second that day at Waltz was back. He cursed under his breath and tried to scramble down the bed. I'm sorry Min Yoongi but it was too late for you to escape from Jung Hoseok.

I grabbed his shoulder and pushed him back as I held on to my stern gaze. He began scanning the bed frantically and I knew what he was looking for.

I snorted and walking back towards the sofa, I picked up the damaged leather jacket and turned to face him. Yoongi could no more hide his anxiety and fear with the passive expression I first saw on his face. He knew that his cover had been yanked overnight.

I fished out his driving license and threw my first question, "Why did you tell me a fake name that day?"

Yoongi looked away in another direction. But that couldn't stop me from asking him the numerous questions piling up in my brain. I wouldn't let this fraud leave without answering them after giving me one hell of a headache since yesterday.

After carrying him home, I got to see that he has a gun tucked between his waist and jeans. And even after that I decided to treat and bandage his wounds on the grounds of humanity. But after leaving him on my bed when I reached out for his jacket and tried to search for any emergency contact, his wallet dropped down on the floor. I gave up trying to decode the password of his mobile and instead tried to find something useful in his wallet. It was then I discovered a driving license with the exact same person's image but with a different name. _Min_ _Yoongi_ it read.

I clearly remembered him introducing himself as Min Yoonbin. I tried to connect the dots but unfortunately nothing seemed to make sense. Why would a mysterious man who carried a gun and hid his real identity look for Solar that too with a wrong name?

I had to wait until he woke up and now I just couldn't let him go so easily. I needed my answers.

"If you think you can escape by staying quiet, you got me wrong mister," I continued, "Why do you have a gun with you?"

Another moment of silence passed as his face eventually returned to that passive expression.  
"Why were you looking for Yong sun? How do you know her?"

He huffed and balled his fingers into a fist.

His fingers were looking rather empty, now that his rings were gone. Last night I had removed his four large blood-stained rings that read S.U.G.A. At my first glimpse I thought they were made of diamonds, but while washing them I did figure out they were nothing but fake. However, this man, in fact, his names were baffling me a lot. First Yoonbin, then Yoongi, now what the hell was _SUGA?_

I ignored his actions and asked again, "Who the hell are you? What connection do you have with Waltz? ANSWER ME."

"YAH, FINE! I am not Min Yoonbin but Min Yoongi and what more do you expect from a mafia?" he snapped finally.

I felt my breath hitching at his last word. What shit had I gotten myself in? However, I didn't let my true thoughts appear on my face and instead smirked and sat down on the sofa.

"Mafia, you say," I said, "Now I'm really interested to know more."

"Why the heck should I tell you anything?" Yoongi retorted again like a furious cat ready to attack any predator.

"Why shouldn't you tell me considering that I literally saved your life last night? I guess you were in some fight causing that wound."

After a moment of silence, he again spoke, "Th-thank you for that."

I ignored the stupid gratitude and repeated an unanswered question, "How do you know Yong sun?"

He heaved a long sigh and replied, "I don't know any Yong sun."

I didn't waste a single moment to ask another question, "Then what were you doing at the studio and how do you know a name similar to hers?" Although Solar was angry at me, I was, to be honest, concerned about her safety.

Instead of answering the question, Yoongi directed a new question at me, "Did you call the cops already?"

I snickered and replied, "What if I did?" I couldn't believe that this Yoongi guy thought me to be so heartless even after I brought him to my apartment risking my own safety and privacy.

He again began cursing under his breath and got off the bed on his shaky legs. A groan escaped his mouth as his hand went up to his wound.

I rushed to his side and pushing him down to sit on the mattress, I forcefully removed his hand to check the bandage. The white cloth was again tinted red. He was bleeding again.

"You shouldn't be moving around that hurriedly with such a wound," I spoke in an irritating tone.

Yoongi pushed off my hand and huffed, "I am not a kid. I can take care of myself."

"I can see that," I twitched my lips and got up to get back the first aid kit. The bandage had to be changed again.

"Where's my mobile?" Yoongi asked before I could walk out of the room.

I got the device from the sofa and tossing it at him, I walked away.

  
_**~** _ _**Yoongi's** _ _**P.O.V** _ _**~** _

I picked up my mobile as soon as the tall guy threw it at my direction and walked out.  
Last night when I didn't want to be helped by some policeman, I didn't want to be helped by Jimin's trainer either. Why the hell did he have to be the one at the street then? _I didn't even remember his name although MB had given me that simple fact while collecting_ _Jimin's_ _information._

But what had been done had been done. I huffed and unlocked my mobile. I had to get out of this place as soon as possible. I didn't trust this man. Maybe he hadn't called the cops yet. But there was no assurance that he wouldn't.

I dialled MB's number and waited for him to pick up the call. With every second passing, I became more restless. My fingers brushed through my blonde hair as I pushed it away from my forehead.

As the dancer returned with a first-aid kit, MB answered the call. The tall guy squatted down before me and lifting my blood-stained torn t-shirt, he began removing the old bandage. I knew it would be useless and foolish to resist him in my present condition. I left him undisturbed and began speaking with MB. I had to hiss from time to time due to the burning pain though.

"Hello, Boss? Where are you?" MB asked from the other end anxiously.

I was confused. "Why are you asking that?" I questioned back.

MB answered, "Jeno had gone to your place last night after everything was over to check on you. But you're not there. Where are you? Are you okay, Boss?"

At this point of life, I didn't know if anyone cared for me the way MB and JN did.

I replied, "I'm okay, MB. Don't worry. But you need to help me get back home."

"Yes, Boss. What should I do?"

"You need to pick me up from a place and drop me at my apartment complex."

"Okay. What's the address?" MB asked.

_Damn it! I would have to ask this man his address._

I looked down at him unwillingly. He was done bandaging the deep cut.

I cleared my throat to get his attention. After packing back the scattered stuff, he looked up at me with furrowed eyebrows and almost barked, "What do you want?"  
I rolled my eyes and asked, "What is your address?"

He huffed and stood up.

"Put it on speaker," he ordered.

I pulled down the device and turned on the speaker. He bent down and began speaking. He looked at me through his messy bangs after uttering the full address and stood back straight.   
That was some strong gaze I had ever seen. How did Jimin manage to attend this person's classes everyday?

Once he was done, I turned off the speaker and brought the mobile to my ear.

"Got it?" I asked to confirm.

"Yes, Boss. I will be there in 20 minutes," MB replied.

"Fine, make it fast," I hung up the call.

The dancer had walked out of the room again, probably to keep back the supplies in their respective places and dispose the previous blood-stained bandage and cotton. I stood up slowly, careful about not straining the wound too much again.

He had dropped my jacket at one end of the bed. I picked up my favourite outfit to get a better look. Those sneaky bastards didn't only hurt Jimin but also had the audacity to destroy my goddamn leather jacket. _The next time I see them, they are definitely dead._

I huffed and put it on ignoring the pain surging all over my body. I picked up my wallet, driving license and gun and as I was putting them back in their respective spots, the tall man walked back into the room.

He held a sandwich on a plate before me and said in a flat voice, "Eat it."

I walked away and turned down his request, "No, I'm fine. Thanks anyway."

However, instead of giving up like every other average human, he walked up to me and grabbing my forearm turned me making me face him and repeated, "Eat it now. Have you ever looked at your body? I have never seen an underworld person with such a lanky figure."

I heaved a sigh and picking up the sandwich from the plate began taking bites. The taste of cheese filled my senses. I was reminded for a second of my childhood days when I didn't have to eat dry bread and survive on unhealthy crumbs.

I sensed the man again increasing the distance between us. I heaved a breath of relief.  
The moment I finished eating, however, a sudden question caught me off guard.

"By any chance, do you follow Jimin around?" the dancer asked.

I choked on the last bits of the bread as I turned towards him in a flash. This guy was definitely some vampire.

I tried to calm myself down and replied, "Wh-who is J-jimin?" _Damn it! Why did I have to stutter?_

This time he rolled his eyes and spoke, "That was a horrible attempt. But listen clearly, Min Yoongi."

He stood up and continued, "I can go to the cops right now with charges of trespassing and stalking against you."

_He really thought taking down Min_ _Yoongi_ _would be so easy._

I smirked and replied, "As if you've tonnes of evidence to file a proper complaint against me."

He huffed and went silent for a moment. However, soon I found him standing right next to me and looking down straight into my eyes as he spoke in a low voice, "I might not have any concrete proof now but if I see you anywhere near the Waltz or Jimin again, no one will be worse than me."

Before I could reply to him, the doorbell rang. I was certain that it was MB and the tall guy moved away from me to answer the door.

I heaved a heavy breath after a long time. I walked out of the room and saw MB at the main door. I walked past the dancer and thanked MB for coming to pick me up first.

But before I left the place, I had a work to complete. I didn't like being indebted to anyone and this dancer was no exception.

I asked MB, "Do you have some cash with you now?"

He was visibly confused as he replied back, "Y-yes, Boss...But why?"

"I need to thank...," I had to stop midway as I realised that I still didn't know the name of the person who helped as well as threatened me although he already knew quite some stuff about me.

_**~** _ _**Hoseok's** _ _**P.O.V.** _ _**~** _

Yoongi stopped in the middle of his words and turned his head back to look at me. I almost snorted at his embarrassment but decided not to in front of his subordinate. Instead I smirked and replied, "Jung Hoseok."

He rolled his eyes and turned around to look at the even shorter guy standing at my door. I was having a tough time believing that these small humans were actually connected to the underworld and maybe I would have treated it as a joke if I didn't see Yoongi's gun.

MB was dressed in a grey hoodie and black jeans. His face was covered with a black mask. I wanted to know his full name and to see his face too but it was impossible I guess.

The MB guy began pulling out his wallet. Meanwhile, I walked closer to Yoongi and mumbled in a low voice, "If you really want to pay me back, do it with your own money."

Before our conversation could proceed, a thudding sound filled the place. I looked down and saw that MB had dropped his mobile while taking out his wallet. I bent down and picked it up. But while handing it back to the guy I saw something which made my heart stop beating for the second time since morning.

"I can't do that. You know the present condition of my wallet already. Just take this money today," I heard Yoongi's raspy voice speaking. He appeared to walk into the living room with a bunch of notes and was soon out of my apartment. They were gone the next moment but I stood at my door staring at the closed door of the opposite apartment.

My brain had stopped processing any logic after what I just saw on MB's mobile. _Why are these different sides of my life colliding with each other in such weird ways?_

The image of MB's lockscreen and the recent notification floating over it just wouldn't leave me alone it seemed.

_How did Solar know this MB guy who worked for_ _Yoongi_ _?_

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 12 : Answers and Questions.**

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_

_**~** _ _**Taeyong's POV** _ _**~** _

  
And in between all this, we didn't notice someone standing at the end of the corridor.

He looked flustered, his orbs were of the size of dumplings, and he smiled at us. It was easy to understand that the smile, with that blush, was not intentional, but something he did because he was unable to figure out what exactly to do, but Ten and me didn't complain, because we were no less baffled.

I mean, I knew Korea is not so open-minded, but again, I had never given a single fuck about that, as long as our families were supportive of us. I didn't mind the whole world knowing that Ten was my boyfriend, but, _when your student catches you red-handed, it surely is weird._

"J-j-jimin...d-do you need a-anything?" I somehow tried to manage the situation, while Ten struggled to run away but at the same time stay still, and Jimin continued to grin like a fool.

Jimin gulped and then somehow replied, "I..actually..I just wanted to ask..I mean..I-is Hoseok hyung o-okay, he didn't tell me the cause of his absence when he called me today morning. I-I am sorry for disturbing, I didn't mean to..."

I smiled to ease the situation. By now, both my boyfriend and I had gotten over the embarrassment. After all it was not our first time getting caught and it was much better than that time when Ten lent his phone to his mother and she somehow read all our chats.

But Jimin seemed to be still at shock.

"I think he is alright. I mean, he sounded fit and rather excited over the phone. You need not worry!"

Jimin nodded, and before turning to return, stared at Ten for the last time.

Ten mouthed a "Look at him!" and pointed at Jimin's cheeks. They were so red...as if he was the one who was caught in an uncomfortable situation.

Before Jimin could take a step towards the classroom, I called him.

"W-what, hyung?" he turned and replied.

"You know what you just saw, right?"

I somehow controlled my laughter; I had never seen someone being this shocked at an unexpected question.

Jimin was known for his gift-of-the-gab, but right now, he was definitely at his wit's end.

"No-I mean..yes, yes I do."

"No you don't." Ten's reply baffled him more. I liked where it was going.

We spared him as it looked like he was almost on the verge of his tears. 

I went closer to him and lowered my voice before I told him something very important. Honestly, I am very proud of myself because of that.

"Listen here Jimin" I started, "Don't let anyone fool you. I know you must have met people who keep telling you that if you are boy, you are supposed to like girls and girls only; the ones who say that being anything other than straight is a sin. But that's not true, and I am a living example of that. Ten is my boyfriend, and I won't hide it from you. But just because we both are boys, it does not mean we are less happy than any other straight couple. And anything that gives you happiness, without harming anyone else, can never be a sin.

Jimin, you can love whoever you want, do not let stupid demarcations limit your emotions. It's all about who you want, and not who the society wants you to be with. It's your life at the end of the day. Don't think that I am going against the laws of nature, just because I am in a relationship with the guy. Nature never had any law; because if it did, I wouldn't have been in love with a guy in the first place; it's the stupid people who do these shits. _The only thing that you need to make sure is that you are happy. And that's it. Go date a girl, date a boy, you live only once!"_  
  


Jimin looked star-struck. Absolutely star-struck. And I felt lowkey like a celebrity, but I did not complain either. He just said one sentence, and it was enough to make my day.  
"Thank you hyung. Now I know what I saw. _Love - that's it."_

After Jimin left, I kissed Ten for the last time before he was ready to go. Honestly, I was so lucky to have a handsome hunk like him. He was literally in a casual brown sweater, but he was killing it more than anyone in an expensive suit would!

_**~** _ _**Jimin's POV ~** _

  
Today was just so freaking amazing. And I just could not expect the day to get better.

I could not sleep last night thinking about what would happen if I, somehow, developed a crush on someone from the same sex, and how would I even answer my parents' questions. But now I was very clear, I knew exactly what to answer.

I knew that Love is actually beyond anything and everything. And that's the only thing that matters.

I giggled and jumped all my way to the Bharatnatyam classes. The room was not completely empty, with few students gossiping as they tied their ghungroos to their ankles. But this time, I did not stare at them with wide-eyes. I was _rich_ this time - I had a pair for myself!

I sat down with a lot of excitement. But all of it faded away in a split second. Yes, I did have a ghungroo for myself, but how was I supposed to tie that? 

I knew no one would help me, I knew all the female students secretly judged me. What to do, after all, not everyone was lucky enough to have a Taeyong hyung for themselves, who could tell them that _Love was beyond the divisions of sex and gender - be it love for a person, or an art form._  
  


I tried copying them, but something was going wrong everytime I tried to tie the ghungroos. What should I do? Should I check a YouTube tutorial right now?

I sat fidgeting with the white ropes with golden balls, and suddenly I felt a pair of helpful hands coming out for me. I looked up, it was unexpected.

"Give them to me, I think I can tie them right." I could not see the face behind the long black hood clearly, but the voice was very familiar, and enough for me to know who it was.

"How do _YOU_ know how to tie a ghungroo, Jungkook?"

"Cause I have been seeing my mother do this same one thing almost every day, before I went to Seoul to study. And you know what, I am a quick learner." He replied while his fingers showed their magic as they tied my current favourite thing to a part of my body. And thus, I _, finally, achieved the precious mark of a Bharatnatyam dancer._

"I know right." I replied as I recalled his Facebook profile filled with pictures of him excelling in almost every thing I knew about.

He looked up and smiled. 

_I won't say I had a crush_ , but his bunny teeth were too cute to resist.

So I smiled back. And did I blush? Maybe...a little...

Jungkook's mother soon entered the class and everyone stood up quickly. We soon assembled ourselves in two lines. Mrs. Jeon smiled at us and we wished her a good morning.  
The class started with my test. And not to brag, but I could tell from their faces that I did better than what all of them had expected.

"Bravo, Jimin! You have correctly memorized all the mudras! You are amazing! You have passed the first level, and you're ready for the next one!"

"Mom, you are talking like as if it's a game!" Jungkook joked as he sat on his knees while setting his camera.

We all laughed out loud. But various "Isn't he very cute and handsome?" from the girls around me didn't escape my ears in the roll of laughter.

"He is" I nodded. Thank God nobody really saw it. Anyway, _it was not that I was having a crush._

We ended the class with the Bhumi Pranam (I was well-versed with all the Indian names by now). And I felt so full after the classes ended. 

Today, I learnt the basic postures of Bharatnatyam. Honestly it was poles apart from hip-hop. In hip-hop, we were allowed to move our body parts as much as we could. But here, I was supposed to stay stiff. The posture was very important. I was supposed to be clean in how I moved my arms and legs. After all, as Mrs.Jeon said, we had to tell a full story through our body. The story would not be narrated to the audience either; all we had were 'bol'. So we had to make it very clear that the audience got what we wanted to convey. And the one and only medium of communication was our movements and our postures. It was definitely a tough job. I really had to practice a lot.

My class ended earlier than the others because they were practicing for some complex Bharatnatyam choreography, Ganesh Vanadana (an ode to Hindu Lord Ganesha), which I was not ready to be a part of yet. So I quickly did the Bhumi Pranam and went and sat in a corner to remove the ghungroo from my ankles.

"Will you be able to do it?"

It looked like Jungkook was also done with his photography.

I smiled hesitatingly. Of course I needed help, but I guess we weren't quite close enough for me to ask him directly.

I just stared at him like a doe. He however got the hint, Thank god.

"So, where will you go now?"

"Huh?!" I was surprised because I surely was not expecting a question from him.

"I mean, are you free now?"

I smiled and nodded.

"Get up then. I am taking you to Coffee Mug."

I hesitated. But again, if someone was paying for my lunch, why would anyone even complain. (Yes, the burger at Coffee Mug was huge enough to be one person's lunch). So I agreed.  
We both got out of Waltz soon. Today was hotter than the other winter days. I wished Jungkook took off his large black hoodie. That would make his face more visible to me. But again, _I was definitely not having a crush._

The waiters in Coffee Mug rushed to wish a good morning to their owner's son Jeon Jungkook. Everything about Jungkook was so filmy - a rich background, loving and supportive parents, he himself being good at everything, plus the dashing look - I wonder how he was yet so humble and polite when he talked. 

We sat down after ordering the necessary. Coffee Mug was expensive, but I knew that I did not have to pay this time. Today was really amazing.

"Okay, so.." I could feel that Jungkook wanted to start the conversation, but was stuttering like an awkward mess. It was actually cute, but of course not cute enough _for me to develop a crush on him._

"Jimin.."

"Yes?"

"Well, I saw certain stuffs on your Facebook profile. The bullies..."

I stopped him abruptly. This was the very last thing I wanted. Today was going really well, and I did not want the horrible memories from last day tarnish my happiness.

"O-okay" Jungkook got my hint, "Let's not talk about this if you are not comfortable. Then..how about you tell me how you are liking my mom's classes?"

Finally, a topic I could speak hours on. I was so excited to tell him how much I loved Bharatnatyam and the Indian culture. Everything about it seemed to be so vibrant to me, it was like all in red and golden, just like the Bharatnatyam costumes I had seen in the pictures on the Internet. I was in love, also with Mrs. Jeon. She was always so nice, to me and to everyone, and she always reminded me of my mother...

We chatted for half an hour more, before we were interrupted by a call. Jungkook's phone was buzzing.

I saw him getting all excited and overjoyed as soon as the contact name popped up on screen. Was it Mrs.Jeon? 

However, he didn't pick it up and probably texted something in reply. I guess it was not Mrs. Jeon then. Why would he not pick up his mother's call in my presence, after all, I knew both of them! It was definitely someone else. Solar noona? Or..there was actually _someone_ in his life to make him as happy as he looked now? But again, why did I care, _I did not have a crush, right?_

After few more minutes and finishing our meal, we headed out.

"Thanks for the treat!" I smiled.

"Anytime." He replied "I guess we are friends now?"

"Definitely!" 

We both laughed. But the laughter did not last long.

A tall figure suddenly appeared in front of my eyes, and it took me sometime to realize who he was. And as soon as I did, I flared up in anger. It was Choi Soobin, my ' _dear friend'_. 

"Jimin.."

"What do you need?" I said in a stern voice.

"Thank god I luckily met you here. Why aren't you picking up your phone? Anyway, I have something important to tell you."

I realized my phone was on silent during the class. But it was also not that I was in the mood to pick up the call from a person who broke my trust and did so dirty to me. I was thousand percent sure that it was Soobin who had informed the bullies about me pursuing Bharatnatyam. After all, his twin brother Choi Seokmin was one of them too!

"But I have nothing to hear from you!" I replied.

"Well, you need to listen Jimin. The ones who bullied you..."

"I told you, right! I don't want to!" I shouted.

"Well, bro, I don't know who you are, but if it is something that makes Jimin uncomfortable, why are you even doing it?" 

Soobin looked baffled; he was not expecting this unknown guy to speak up in between. But it was really sweet of Jungkook to take my side.

"But..but..Its very important!" Soobin replied.

I could sense from his tone that he was serious. I should give him a chance.  
"Okay, what is it?" I asked.

Soobin dragged me to a corner by my arm. Kids these days..they often forgot that I was after all, older than them, even if I was in the same class as him.

"Listen!" he lowered his voice, "Someone last night beat the entire gang, including my brother, really bad! They were out till late and gossiping and chilling out near the tattoo parlour..you know the one near the alley which remains closed most of the time? Yes there. And suddenly two men, dressed in complete back came and started beating them up till they were all bleeding. Then the men dragged them to the dark alley, where they saw another mafia, he was probably the boss. We found them today morning in the same place in a very serious condition. I guess my parents have already informed the police. But right now, they are all admitted in the hospital with two of them in the ventilation! I am so sacred Jimin..who did it to them?"

My soul left my body as soon as I heard whatever Soobin told me. I failed to believe my ears. "Are you kidding me? Where did you know all these from?"

"Well" Soobin replied, " Hyun ki is the only lucky one who is in the condition to at least speak, and he informed all of these to his parents and they further told my parents."

I had a cascade of emotions and thoughts running through my head. It was not that I was sorry for them, because I knew very well that they deserved every bit of it. They had been causing troubles to many people in school, and in the neighbourhood as well. But the fact that they got their punishment the very day they laid their hands on me was really disturbing. I hated my connection with the incident that became the talk of Busan.

"They don't know the guys? I mean the ones who beat them up?" I asked.

"No! But from their current condition, I can tell you one thing. It is definitely a work of a mafia or some professional fighter - it was definitely not his first time handling such a business."

_Mafia or a professional fighter...?_

_Professional fighter...?_

As I repeated the words to myself, a thread of pictures crossed my mind. 

_Boxing_... _Taekwondo_...

_Professional fighter!_

_Jeon Jungkook!!_

All the merry feelings I had towards him since yesterday night vanished in a second. Why was he trying to meddle in my business? Was he trying to be a hero or something? I was cent percent sure Jungkook was the one - after all, even Mina had told me how Jungkook commented against all the posts the bullies uploaded. Plus, even today morning, he tried to bring up the same topic. He was the one, I was sure of that. 

He was a rich guy, and Mr. Jeon was one of the most influential men in the whole of Korea. So it would be naturally very easy for him to escape. But what about me? I came from a lower middle class background, plus, I did not even have my parents with me in Busan. The police would definitely not ignore the connection I had with the bullies. What if they called me for an investigation...? The whole world would get to know that I was learning Bharatnatyam..and not only that, I could even get falsely accused for something I didn't even dream of doing!

Oh god, I was in a terrible situation right now! And the only person who was responsible for that was ...

" _Jeon Jungkook!!_ " I murmured as I clenched my fists in anger.

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 13 : "Distance".**

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_

_**~** _ _**3rd Person P.O.V.** _ _**~** _

Ear-piercing groans filled the end of the dark alley. Few silhouettes were seen here and there in the deserted floor of the wrecked building. Except one, all the other shadows were lying on the floor. Some seemed lifeless, while some seemed to be struggling for a breath. The only steady shadow kicked the torso of the person at their feet forcing another groan to resonate in the area. 

Meanwhile, a trembling figure stood outside. The person was hugging themselves and with every new shriek, they flinched. Their vision was blurry due to tears and their small, fair palms brushed their cheeks every other second to rub away the salty drops. The cold wind only increased their shivering.

After a few more seconds, the main iron door of the building was pushed open and a man, clad in black leather jacket walked out. His long dark wavy bangs almost covered his eyes. He smiled at the trembling person, who was now leaning on the cold wall of the opposite building.

"Wh-why did you hit them?" they asked.

The tall man walked closer, smirking, and replied, "Don't worry, Jimin. Now you don't have to be scared anymore."

The dim white light of the roadside lamppost gave a clearer view of the man's face.

  
_"Jeon Jungkook?!"_   
  


_**~** _ _**Jimin's P.O.V.** _ _**~** _

_Jeon Jungkook._

That cheerful, friendly face appeared before my eyes and I immediately sat up on my bed. I was sweating profusely and it was almost impossible for me to think it was a winter night. I pulled the messed up blanket to cover myself properly. I drew my legs near my chest and hugged my knees. I tried to even out my erratic breathing.

It was not a dream. Well, from one aspect, it was. But right now, it was more of a nightmare for me.

My mind rushed to the events of the previous day.

After Soobin told me what had happened to his cousin and the other bullies, only one name crossed my mind. I didn't know anyone else who could do that. Leaving Soobin at the spot, I l walked back to Coffee Mug.

Jungkook's face lit up seeing me back at the table. He was about to say something, but I picked up my bag from the chair and ordered, "Come out now. We need to talk."

He seemed to be confused and replied, "But we are here to talk."

"No, I can't talk with you here," I said and walked out of the cafe.

A few moments later, Jungkook scampered behind me. I shifted to a side of the vacant pavement and turned to face him. He still looked lost. But I knew better than to trust anyone. If he could do well in every possible activity, he could probably do well in acting too.

Jungkook spoke first, "What's the matter, Jimin?"

I cleared my throat and began speaking, "Where were you last night?"

"What do you mean by that? Why such an abrupt question?" his voice gradually turned incredulous.

I grew impatient and changed my question, "Why did you hit the boys from my school?"

Jungkook's eyes seemed to pop out of their sockets as he replied, "What?!"

"Why did you attack my bullies?" I snapped.

"Why the hell will I attack your bullies? I don't even know them!" Jungkook defended himself.

I shook my head and repeated, "It has to be you. You stood up against them on Facebook. And now they are lying on hospital beds. I have no one else in my life who can hit people so ruthlessly."

"And you think I can? We just met two days ago and I have been nothing but nice to you!"

"But you know martial arts and actually excel in them. And that's my point, Jungkook! We just met two days ago and even before knowing me personally, you stood up against my bullies. Why would you do that? What do you want from me?"

"I want nothing. I just want you to be happy with your choices and that's why I protested against those negative posts on Facebook. You are one of Mom's most unique students and I didn't want you to drift away from your choice for some insensible pricks," he paused for a moment and after catching his breath, he suddenly asked," But wait! How do you know I know martial arts?"

I felt embarrassed for a second but looking away from him, I replied, "Obviously from your profile. What do you expect a stranger to do when you text them out of nowhere?"   
"Oh," Jungkook muttered. "But I didn't hit your bullies or anything. I don't even know them, Jimin."

I looked back at him and said, "Stop it, Jungkook! You knew them. You had seen their pictures. Stop doing all these. I have enough problems to handle. I don't want to get involved in the talk of the town over that."

"But I didn't –," Jungkook tried to deny the accusation again but I stopped him midway.

"Stay away from me. I'm requesting you," I said in a cold voice and walked away.

I couldn't erase Jungkook's confused face from my mind but on the other hand the truth kept on troubling me. If it weren't him, then who would go to that extent for me? It was so not possible for Hoseok hyung to do such a work.

But again, it was not apparently possible for Jungkook too. He had returned from Seoul just a few days ago.

And if he was saying the truth, then who could do this?

The sound of my alarm clock broke the silence besides giving me a headache. I removed the blanket to stop the monotonous noise and pressed my temples.

Looking up at the window, I saw the sky turning light orange. I couldn't waste my time thinking about such useless stuff anymore. I had to get ready for class before Hoseok hyung arrived and I secretly hoped that Jungkook wouldn't be there today. I certainly wasn't looking forward to some moments of awkward silence.

I got down from my bed and walked towards the washroom. Completing the daily chores and changing into my sweatpants and baggy t-shirt, I put on my black hoodie and moved to the kitchen foyer. Preparing my bowl of cereal, I sat down to gulp the contents.

I had ten minutes before Hoseok hyung would arrive.   
  


**_~_ ** **_Taehyung's P.O.V._ ** **_~_ **

Yeontan scampered over my clothes lying in the open trolley to rush out of my room as he heard Mom calling for him.

"Tannie!!!" I whined at him uselessly as he left pugmarks on my favourite t-shirts.

I took out the folded t-shirts to dust off Yeontan's fur from them. Not really a good start to the day.

However, as I was folding back the clothes, my mobile started ringing in a familiar tune and a smile spread over my face. I had been waiting for this call since yesterday.

Jungkook didn't call me back last night but when he texted saying that he was really tired and needed some sleep, I understood.

I knew he would talk to me when he felt better and I really wanted him to rest as he seemed to have a busy day. And now as he was the one calling me after days of being the other way round, I felt all giddy inside.

I hurriedly picked up the device from the nightstand and swiped the green button.

"Hello, Kookie!!" I answered like a five year-old.

After a little yawn on the other side, I heard the sweet calming voice speaking, "Hello, Tae. Good morning."

"Did you sleep well?" I asked.

"Yeah, kind of. Sorry, Tae I couldn't call back yesterday."

My smile disappeared as I sensed something off in my boyfriend's voice.  
"What's wrong, Kook?" I questioned.

After a short pause, he replied,  
"Umm...nothing. Why are you asking?"

I can sense when you lie, Jungkook, I thought to myself and replied, "I know you for three years. It's not that hard, you know."

He chuckled and said, "Yeah I know that. But don't worry, Taetae. I'm alright."

"Then why didn't you get proper sleep? You said you're tired."

"I don't know, Tae. But I don't really have anything to do today. I will try to sleep some more after I get my breakfast."

"Oh, okay. And call me whenever you feel like," I said and after a short pause, I added, "If something is bothering you, you can share that with me, Kookie."

He hummed in reply. I tried to change the topic to divert his mind. He could tell me what's wrong whenever he was ready.

"Guess where I will be for the next few days?" I asked him playfully.

"Don't tell me you're coming to Busan!" Jungkook almost freaked out like the baby bunny he was.

I cackled at his outburst and after controlling my laugh, I replied, "No, baby! I am not giving you that kind of anxiety in front of your parents."

"Oh!" he sounded relieved.

I chuckled and disclosed the actual news I wanted to give him for so long, "I'm going to Namjoon hyung tomorrow!"

"Wait! What? Really, Tae?" he sounded more excited than me and I wasn't complaining. I had made Jungkook a fanboy of hyung in these three years. At this point he admired hyung more than me probably.

"Yesssss!! Appa gave permission as I don't have anything to do in the holidays and hyung also said he doesn't have much work load now," I replied.

"That's amazing!" he replied, "You deserve this trip so much. But..."

As he stopped suddenly, my smile changed to a frown. "What happened?" I asked worriedly.

"I'll be so lonely," he mumbled.

I could feel my heart breaking into pieces with that cute voice at the other end. I wanted to run from Daegu to Busan right now and hug Jungkook with all my might.

But since that was not possible, I tried to coax him from miles away, "No, baby! I will text you regularly and I will facetime if I find good quality network, I promise. I'm always there by you, remember?"

He seemed to heave a long breath and replied, "Yes, I do. But now you'll go farther away from me."

"Shush, I will never go far from you, Kookie. I love you," I muttered as I slid down on the floor at the side of my bed and hugged my knees closer to my chest.

"I love you too," he whispered on the other side. After a short pause of what sounded like sniffling, Jungkook spoke, "When will you come back?"

"A month later maybe," I replied. I had asked Dad not to book my return ticket yet. I wanted to stay with Namjoon hyung as long as possible. I had not seen him in last three years. I missed him like crazy."

"Okay. You have all your stuff packed properly, right?" he asked like a concerned mother.

I smiled and answered, "Almost, sir. I will complete the work soon."

"Good. And travel safely, Taetae. I will miss you so much," Jungkook spoke. I could almost see his puffy cheeks and the glistening eyes in front of me.

I smiled before continuing, "I'll miss you too, baby...And open your Messenger. I have something to send to you."

"Okay! Bye then," I could finally hear a smile in his voice.

Yup, bye!" I replied and pulling down the mobile, I hung up the call.

I opened the camera and switched it to the front camera to click a selca. If I couldn't reach Jungkook now, at least I could send him this much.

After clicking a weird pouty selfie, I opened my Messenger and sent it to my boyfriend with a short message saying, " _Now you'll miss me less."_

The reply came before I expected. " _Yes, you're_ _ryt_ _XD_ _go pack your bags now_ ," he had written.

" _Okay_ :3," I typed back.

I kept the device on the nightstand and saw Yeontan walking back into my room. I lifted him in my arms and nuzzling my nose on his soft fur, I let him down on the floor. I had to complete packing my luggage in an hour or else I wouldn't get my snacks. It was Eomma's order.

**_**Next Morning**_ **

I waved at Eomma and Appa as I walked into Daegu International Airport. I made sure that the straps of Yeontan's sling bag were secure enough and in the process, I petted his head to keep him from losing his cool in the new environment. I pulled my trolley behind me and moved towards the counters to get my boarding pass.

**_**Two Hours Later**_ **

I walked up the ramp to get into the aeroplane with my backpack and Yeontan, clutching the ticket and passport hard. This was not my first time on a plane but it was definitely my first time alone, that too for such a long journey.

It was going to be an overnight flight as I had to go to the capital of India, New Delhi. Namjoon hyung had gone there for a few days for some work. We would return to his original workplace two days later. I couldn't wait to see the excavation sites and send some pictures to Jungkook. Also, this would be my first time watching hyung so closely at his work. He loved archaeology since his middle school years and I was more than happy when he got this chance to take it up as his profession along with his college friend, Jackson. Hyung had to go away from us due to his job but his happiness and passion didn't let me be sad for long. I couldn't wait to see him.

Walking a bit through the aisle, I finally found my seat. Yeontan barked softly from time to time but the other passengers didn't seem to be bothered. The window seat in the row was already occupied by a man, who was busy typing something on his laptop. I kept my bag in the overhead cabin and prepared to settle down.

However, I felt something near my feet as soon as I sat down. I looked down. A white dongle was lying on the dark carpet.

I scratched my head and looked at the man on the adjacent seat. He was still hooked on his laptop screen. It was probably his dongle and after a few seconds of hesitation, I crouched down to pick up the little object.

I cleared my throat before speaking and stretching my arm towards him, I said, "Excuse me, I think you dropped this dongle."

The person finally looked away from the laptop and turned towards me. He had an extremely handsome face and the glasses made him look like a college student. As he smiled at me, the light entering through the plane window almost presented him as an angel.

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 14 : Home Away From Home**

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_

_**~** _ _**Seokjin's** _ _**POV ~** _

"Excuse me, I think you dropped your dongle.."

The unexpected deep voice made me take my eyes off from my laptop and look at the handsome stranger smiling at me, my co-passenger for this flight from Daegu to Delhi.

I looked at the arm stretched towards me. He was holding my white dongle. Honestly, I had been so busy replying to some of the innumerous comments on my recent vlog on YouTube Studio that I did not even notice that the dongle had fallen down. _It's difficult being famous, you know._

I smiled at the person as I let out a polite, "Thank you". He was in red, rather handsome, and thank god he was. It was not that I was a rude person, but I would have actually hated to look at an ugly face for the next few hours of the journey. _I am a worshipper of beauty, and my face is the temple._ Thank God my co-passenger was actually good enough to visit it.

"Its okay!" he replied to my thank you with a warm smile. He was much younger than me.

I was almost about to refocus my mind on my vlog channel when I heard another unexpected sound. This time, it was a bark.   
So my co-passenger was not alone. He was with his pet dog.

I smiled and waved at the dog. He barked again, but softer.

"Looks like Tannie likes you!" he said with a broad grin.

_Of course, who would even think of hating a face as perfect as mine?_

"Yeah, he does" I replied, "I like him too. I like dogs. I believe that dogs are the most intelligent and the best at communication. I mean, you can talk about anything and everything with them - for example, prisons."

"Prisons? I am not sure what you-"

"Yeah, ask your dog what a prison is like, and they'll tell you its _ruff_!"

In the very next second my laughter filled the entire plane, damn, how am I this amazing. Handsome, funny, intelligent - am I even a human from Earth! Or even if I am, no doubt, I am the best in the entire world.

After I could finally control myself I looked at the man next to me. He wasn't laughing as much. Yeah, what else do you expect from school kids - they are all stupid.

"So, is this your first time going to Delhi?" he asked.

"Yes Mister-um.."

"Oh, Taehyung. Kim Taehyung." He got the hint and introduced himself, in return of which, I told him that my name is Kim Seokjin.

"Yes, Taehyung, this is my first time to Delhi. My elder brother works there, you know, he's the Korean ambassador to India."

"Wow, amazing!!"

"Yeah, and I am going to meet him after ages. Also I am a vlogger, and India is, like one of the best places in the world to make vlogs on. So I couldn't miss the chance."

He looked flustered.

"Oh damn, probably that's why your face looked familiar..."

I laughed.

"You need to lie kid, but now that you know you can subscribe to my channel, I mean only if you want lol."

"Yeah sure! Also, did you mention you are going to meet your hyung? What a coincidence, me too!" Taehyung looked really excited.

"Wow!!"

"He works as an archaeological researcher in West Bengal. But right now, since he is in Delhi, he had asked me to meet him there. I just can't wait any longer to hug him tight!"

"Wow, he must be a real intellectual, What is his name?"

"Kim Namjoon. _The best man in the world!_ "

He laughed, and I laughed too, but I clearly wasn't satisfied. There's only one best man - Kim Seokjin - but this kid was really nice, and he didn't know me well. So I let that pass.

_****12 hours later**** _

The journey went really better than I had expected, thanks to this amiable co-passenger of mine, and his adorable puppy. We chatted a lot, about everything,   
music to politics to which food is best for constipation.

Presently we were sitting in the lounge, waiting for our respective hyungs to arrive.

"You know Taehyung.. as a food vlogger and a restaurant owner, I can tell you that _Justice_ is a dish best served cold. Because if it was served warm, it would be _just-water!"_

I laughed out loud as I patted myself with pride and Taehyung looked extremely baffled.

My laughter was interrupted by a call. And I knew who it was.

"Heya...yeah...no I had not been waiting for long....yeah, coming. Yep wait."

My hyung had arrived, I was about to meet Kim Junmyeon after so long, I was almost on the verge of crying.

But before that, I had something else to do. I couldn't let the memory of this nice person fade away.

"Hey, before I leave, would you mind if I click a quick selfie of us? Just as a memoir?"   
Taehyung looked rather elated at the offer and posed well, as I tapped the click button.

I shared the picture to him over Bluetooth ( _I never shared my number with just anybody_ ).

After that, I waved goodbye at him. I ran out of the airport, and saw the familiar face I was longing to look at for so long. But even now, he wasn't smiling. Really, we were so different.

I was a light-hearted cheerful person, while he was grumpy and serious most of the time.

_**~** _ _**Taehyung's** _ _**POV** _ _**~** _

I was a bit down after Seokjin hyung left. The lounge wasn't empty, but it definitely seemed right now.

Honestly, Seokjin hyung was..... _weird_. I did not actually know how to describe that man, because he was very different from everyone I had known in my life till now. Seokjin hyung was so different that he reminded me of nobody, but a lot of things were already reminding me of him, specially the special edition of the magazine lying in front of me that featured dad jokes.

None of his joke was funny, what actually made me laugh was his laughter. It was also very... _weird_. It sounded weird too - sounded like someone was wiping the glasses. And I loved that. He was very warm. And amusing. And of course, handsome.

I sat quietly playing with Yeontan's furs as I quietly waited for Namjoon hyung. It was getting so boring, that I started to amuse myself by imagining situations in my head.

_How would it be if, one day, Namjoon_ _hyung_ _met Seokjin_ _hyung_ _? Namjoon_ _hyung_ _would have been talking about archaeology, or philosophy, or meaning of life, while Seokjin_ _hyung_ _would have probably made a pun out of every word he spoke and then laugh to himself._

The very idea of the situation seemed very entertaining to me. I felt that I could draw an entire comic strip on it!

The ringtone of my cell phone broke the silence of the lounge. So Namjoon hyung had finally arrived!!

I did not even pick the call up in excitement and ran out with Yeontan and my luggage. And finally, I saw the tall figure.

"Hyung!!" I screamed as loudly as I could.

I was seeing him after so long - did he grow even taller? No, maybe he had just lost some weight, and that was making him look taller. But the smile, and those dimples, and the small nose, were all same as before.

I put Tannie down as I enveloped him in a warm hug. He was my hyung, my inspiration, my role model, my best friend and most importantly, my human diary, the person I could share my everything with, and show my real self to!

He pulled my cheeks as he laughed, "Wow, when did you grow so handsome? Even the last time I saw you, you looked nothing better than a potato!"

Hyung then drove me to the hotel. Hyung originally lived with his friend and his co-worker in the ASI quarters, but now that I was here, he had planned to rent a flat and shift there with me temporarily, as I had already made it clear to him that I was not leaving India for months now. But until that happened, he arranged a hotel room for me.

Until now the only idea I could acquire about India was that it was way warmer, and populous than Daegu. It was difficult for me to get more ideas; after all, all airport lounges almost look the same. But now, sitting in the car, I could realize why Namjoon hyung loved this country, which was not even own, so dearly.

India was green - very green. We did not have this greenery in winter, unlike here. And there were a lots of cars, a lots of people, lots of sounds and happenings. I felt like a small city kid who had spent all his life in a caged apartment with two parents suddenly shifting to a huge joint family in a village - wide and green.

We reached the hotel, and to my luck, Namjoon hyung informed me that the hotel was actually very near to his quarters too!

As we got down, I saw someone I did not know, but I could guess who it was.

"Thanks Jackson!", Namjoon hyung smiled as he received the keys from Jackson hyung.

So apparently Jackson hyung had arranged all the reservation and booking in the hotel for me. Namjoon hyung had such nice friends, it really amazed me.

"Hi, Taehyung!" I bowed to say hello as Jackson hyung addressed me.

"I really wanted to talk to you more but am sorry, I'll have to leave. I've got some work. Bye!"

We waved at him and went inside. The hotel was really a grand one, but no worries, Namjoon hyung earned enough.

**_**6 Hours Later**_ **

So today was my first day on the streets of Delhi, India.

All I got to know till now, from the Internet and my encyclopedia brother was that Delhi was the capital of India, and therefore, it had one of the busiest roads in the world. There was always a lot of movement and a lot more of noise. And it also had a lot of pollution (which I could sense already). But of course, it had many more good things about it too.

One of that was of course the food. All I had till now was naan and dal (I hope I was pronouncing them correctly). I was really scared about the food her, as it is completely different from what I had been having all my life. But it was so tasty! Much more than I had expected! I still couldn't figure out how they turned bread into that circular naan, and how pulses tasted so different and how they managed to cook without using even one bottle of sauce - but whatever it was, it was delicious. Not so spicy, but definitely satisfying. I had a lot more items to try, but in case I did not like the others, I can definitely stick to this naan and dal for the rest of my stay.

For Namjoon hyung, however, food was not the most special thing about Delhi, but the fact that it was of such historical significance was. Now, I never understood this particular subject, but as a person who loved paintings and art, I at once agreed to accompany him to a short trip to Qutb Minar (I once again hope that I was spelling it right).

On our way in the cab, Namjoon hyung kept on narrating that there are numerous beautiful places to visit in Delhi alone, and a lot more to enjoy in India. He spoke about how India had everything - from the deepest forests to the mightiest mountains to the bluest oceans. He sounded so much like a tourist guide, it felt as if he was born and brought up here.

However, I wasn't that interested. I always loved to listen to hyung's voice, true, but from the moment I had landed, all I had been hearing from was all about India, Indian culture, Indian history, the people, their lifestyle. However, I was yearning for him to tell him how much he had missed me all these years-

Maybe, I was not one of those attractive ones people generally missed. Probably that's why too, I did not get a single call from my boyfriend yet, or not even a text. _This was the reason why I hated long distance relationships - you could never tell if the other one was missing you, or did not even remember you..._

Yeontan's sudden bark broke my trance. I looked up to realize that we have reached!

"Its 2:30 now, and the monument closes at 4:30", Namjoon hyung informed while getting down, "We have two hours, I'll just go to the office and have my necessary works done while you can roam about. Use my pass, the line at the ticket counter is really long. When you are done, just give me a call, fine?"

"Okay, hyung!"

I had been complaining all this while about how populous India was, but now I realized all that was just the trailer. I saw the real picture when I experienced millions of tourists in the area, busy clicking photos and posing for the same, while the monument stood tall and proud.

"Where do all these people stay, Tannie?" I whispered in awe while my puppy barked in reply.

I slowly walked in. And soon I felt that I had never seen something as vibrant as the Qutub Minar. 

I paid the minimum attention to hyung while he was describing me the history behind the monument, but now, I guessed, I needed to go back and ask him again, I really wanted to know the story now.

It was a really tall tower, completely made out of red stones. The architectural style was very different from that of Korea, but it still managed to impress me to a great extent. There were fine carvings on the walls, there were three red storeys and the last two were whitish, probably made out of marble. There were fine cravings on the walls, and I could not help but think how advanced their creativity was, even back at that time.

Everything was so new here; it felt as if I was in a different planet now. People wore weird clothes; ladies wore colourful gowns, which were not really gowns. There were many foreign tourists too. Everybody seemed to be speaking different languages and that created a great hustle and bustle.

Funny how they do not have one Indian language - how did they even communicate?

The red colour of the monument looked really artistic in the glowing orange light of the sun that was soon to set. The typical designs of the doors reminded me of the India I actually saw on TV. It was no different in reality, in fact, even more vibrant. I took out my camera to click a few quick snaps.

_****3 hours later**** _

"So, you liked Qutub Minar that much?"

Namjoon hyung laughed as I gulped the last bite of the hamburger while comfortably sitting on the hotel bed. Yeontan was sleeping, he was really nervous all day, seeing so many people and so much noise.

"This hamburger is good hyung, but tomorrow I'll have Indian again, pleaseeee!"

"You are still a child..." We both laughed out loud. I was missing these little precious moments with him so much.

Namjoon hyung soon left, after making it sure that I was not afraid to stay by my own. I hated how my family treated me like a child...I was, after all, a high-school graduate!

"Call me, if you have any problem, okay?" he said and he left.

I hurriedly lied down on the bed and pulled over the fluffy blankets. My legs were paining a lot, and I was too tired to stay awake. My body terribly needed rest. But before that, I had something else to put on rest too. _My heart._

I dialed the number as soon as I could. No it was not my mother's number; Namjoon hyung had already informed her about my arrival. It was someone else.

I had been really angry on this one person the entire day for not even texting me once. But the night was a really stupid time. It did something to my bottled up emotions that made it really difficult to control myself. When people said that the things they most fear about the night are ghosts, darkness and so on, I laugh, because for me,the thing I dreaded the most was it's quiet loneliness. It made me miss him so terribly that all my anger faded away at once.

As the phone rang, my heart started beating faster.

"Hello Tae!" Jungkook answered sooner than I had expected.

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 15 : Lone and Broken**

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_

_**~** _ **_Hoseok’s P.O.V_ ** **_~_ **

As I neared to the building of Waltz, I low-key regretted changing my decision and coming to the place. I should’ve stayed at home. However, I had been extremely restless ever since Yoongi left with his subordinate MB. Solar’s text on MB’s phone wasn’t at all making sense to me. Yoongi had said he didn’t know any Yong Sun but his subordinate did and that didn’t help my anxiety in any good way.

I saw Jimin leaving the building with Mrs. Jeon’s son, Jungkook. I was still a bit away and they couldn’t see me. Bharatnatyam classes ended early. As I didn’t have anything else to do, I walked towards my own class. Taeyong must be having a tough time today with that disrespectful bunch. I wasn’t in the condition to lead a dance routine but at least I could be present in the room to supervise.

Leaning on the doorframe, I quietly observed the students following Taeyong’s lead. They were currently doing the choreography for Bomb Bomb. Taeyong was doing a good job in leading the class as usual.

I scanned through all the students. Most of them had actually caught on to the moves quite well. Few students were slacking off. I would have to spend some extra time with them tomorrow. I wish I could join the routine already. But I could feel exhaustion in my bones. Instead I just tapped my feet following the beats.

They were done in a few more minutes.

And as Taeyong, turned around to declare a short break, his eyes met mine. I did a short wave for him and he immediately rushed at my direction. Everyone else in the room had by then seen me and I could sense them becoming stiff.

“Take a break,” I told them on Taeyong’s behalf. They didn’t need any second permission.

Taeyong stood before me and asked ina worried tone, “What are you doing here, hyung? You said you won’t be coming today.”

I smiled at him and replied, “I completed my work. And I had nothing to do so I decided to check once. Anyways I was passing by through here.”

“Oh,” he continued, “That’s so nice of you, hyung...So, how did you like today’s result?”   
“It’s going well from the last part I got to see. You’re doing a good job, Tae,” I had to praise him. He was not letting me down in his role as a trainer.

He thanked me with a bow. However, the tension was back on his visage as he asked, “But is everything alright? You don’t look well, hyung?”

I patted his shoulder and requested him not to worry about me. “I didn’t get enough sleep last night. But I will get back in shape soon. Don’t worry.” Taeyong sighed in reply but didn’t bother me anymore. He knew how not to cross the line of professionalism.   
They were supposed to do another round and he asked me to stay till the end. I agreed as I had no idea what to do anyway.

The performance of all the students seemed better than the last time, maybe because I was seeing it from the beginning this time. Once they were done, I clapped my hands and declared that they all were doing more or less well.

Smiles spread on every face in the room and soon the place was empty.

Taeyong, too, had some work and he asked me to lock up the room since I was already there. I nodded and he rushed out. I hoped he wouldn’t hurt himself in between all this hurry.

I locked the room and dropping the key in my pocket, I walked towards the stairs. I could still hear noises from some rooms. Not all classes were over at the same time. I crossed the room of pole dance and as the door was wide open, I could take a quick glance inside.

A girl, whom I didn’t know personally, was leading the class. Solar must have taken a prior leave. The moment I realised what my mind was thinking even involuntarily, I scolded myself internally. I should just stop instead of thinking about Solar every moment of the day I could spare. She had made it more than clear that she didn’t see me the way I saw her.

But I couldn’t help myself worrying about her, ever since I had found out her connection with a gang member. _Was it really possible to forget someone overnight_? Solar had been everything on my mind over the last few months. But I will have to try. I shook my head and resumed walking towards the exit.

Walking out on the pavement, I fished out my mobile and opened a checklist. I needed some grocery before going back home. I had to buy them from a nearby convenience store. Then I could go back home, since I didn’t know where to look for Solar now that she wasn’t in her class. 

But as soon as I lifted my eyes from my mobile screen, two figures walked past me and I knew that I knew one of them.

I turned in the direction they had walked away and saw a familiar face.

The _bright wide smile_ , the _wavy brown hair_ – I knew these features too well. It was Solar in a simple white blouse and a black skirt walking hand-in-hand with some man clad in a suit.

Was it that Byung guy who worked for Yoongi? I was seeing Solar smile that wide after days. If this person kept her happy, I would never complain. But was it really safe for Solar to go around with some gang member? Did she know the truth?

Before I could decide anything, my legs followed them on their own accord. I didn’t behave like a creepy stalker ever before this time but right now I was worried about Solar’s security. She had made her point clear didn’t mean that I would stay aloof about my friend.

Both of them looked really happy together. Moreover they got incredibly close from time to time to be only friends. Byung even wrapped his arm around Solar’s waist. Yes, by now I had got a clearer view of the guy.

His features were weirdly similar to Yoongi’s subordinate, MB alternatively Byung. It had to be him. Moreover, Solar wasn’t someone to play around with multiple boys at the same time. If she was seeing someone, she must have been serious about him.

As the day’s sunlight started fading away, Solar and Byung walked into a park. I followed them in there and sat on a bench quite far away from them. But I was still getting a good view. I couldn’t let Solar go out of my sight, especially not when she was with that gang member.

Apparently, Byung had bought her an ice-cream and Solar was focused on it. After she finished the cone, I saw Byung leaning towards her and soon Solar’s face was completely covered by the back of his head.

And immediately I regretted the decision of following them.

I turned away for a second. _It hurt_. It hurt a lot to see the girl I liked for months kissing someone else. I wasn’t ready to get over Solar yet.

_Why couldn’t she like me back? What did I lack that this guy had?_

Or maybe I was late. By their intimacy, I wasn’t having a hard time guessing that they had been close for a long time. I should’ve confessed my feelings for Solar much earlier. Perhaps, I would have been in Byung’s place if I was brave enough.   
Soon enough, they broke the kiss and began walking away. I got up from my own place and followed in their direction.

After a brief stroll, they stopped in front of a huge building - a luxurious bungalow. It seemed like the Jeons' place, where Solar used to live, as she pecked Byung’s cheek for the last time in the day and walked in. Byung turned around and started walking towards the nearby bus stop. I crouched behind one of the parked cars along the pavement and luckily he didn’t notice me in the shadows.

After a few minutes, I stood up and walked in the same direction to get a bus. On my way, I spotted a convenience store and decided to buy the necessary items. I had to survive in this city no matter what.

Soon, I was on a bus, heading towards my block.

After the bus dropped me at my destination stop, I began walking towards my building. It was in one of the somewhat good alleys in Busan.

However, as I reached the entrance of the building, I found a familiar figure sitting on the steps outside the place. The smell of cigarette fleeted in the air and the dirty blonde guy seemed to be crushing a cigarette butt under his shoe. I cleared my throat to gain the person’s attention and Min Yoongi looked up in a flash.

**_~_ ** **_Yoongi’s P.O.V._ ** **_~_ **

I finally heard the voice I had been waiting for throughout the last hour. Jung Hoseok was back and cleared his throat. I knew he had recognised me and I looked up immediately.

He seemed to be uncomfortable although, I couldn’t see his face clearly in the low street lights.

“What are you doing here?” he asked. His voice sounded extremely exhausted and _I felt a bit sorry for him_. Dance classes must be tiring too.

However, I directly answered his question, “I think I left my rings here this morning. I am here to get them back.”

I didn’t know what I was thinking while leaving this place in the morning. How could I forget my “SUGA” rings? _They were the only fragments of my stupid teenage dream._

“Oh. Come upstairs, I will give them to you,” Hoseok replied reluctantly.

As he walked into the building, I followed him. While we walked up the stairs, he broke the creepy silence with a question - “You smoke, right?”

I questioned back, “And so what?”

He didn’t seem to be in mood to retort and spoke solemnly, “First, I don’t like the smell. And second, it’s not good for anyone’s health.”

“It _might be bad for anyone’s health but it is definitely good for the environment. Smoking kills people_ ,” I belted out a sassy reply.

I heard him snort and a little smile spread on my lips too.

We were in front of his apartment by then. He unlocked the door and walked in. I followed him quietly. Dropping a grocery bag on the table, he walked towards what was the washroom I guessed. I sat on one of the chairs waiting for him to return with the only shining pieces of myself.

Returning to the drawing room, Hoseok asked me, “Did you have your dinner though?”

I shook my head and replied, “Just give me the rings and I will leave. I will eat something on my way back.”

He placed the four rings on the table and said, “Don’t.”

“Huh?” I was utterly confused.

“Don’t eat outside. I will make something very quickly. Stay for dinner,” he clarified.   
“Do you know what you are telling?” I was more than shocked right now.

“Yes, I know. I really need a drink tonight. But I can’t drink alone and I don’t want to go to any pub now. Since you’re here already, I’m requesting you.”

I hesitated for some time. Could I trust this man? He didn’t look harmful and moreover, I didn’t like the way he was talking now. Even in the morning he seemed like a wholly different person. All this time, he had appeared like a ball of happiness whenever I saw him with Jimin. But he seemed sad today. And it was extremely weird to see him solemn and exhausted.

After few more moments of hesitation, I nodded. I could save myself if he had some other plan but for now I decided to stay.   
He smiled and leaving me with my stuff, walked towards the kitchen foyer.

I ran my fingertips over the large stones of my rings. How worried I was since late noon when I realised they were not on my fingers. _I had lost my dreams. I couldn’t allow myself to lose the memories too._ _SUGA_ _was a face of Min_ _Yoongi_ _._ _SUGA_ _would always be so._ I put the four rings on their respective fingers.

I turned towards the kitchen and saw Hoseok putting ramen in a pot and following it, were some other ingredients.

Ah, ramen! It’s been a terribly long time since I had cooked myself ramen properly. I missed eomma’s fancy noodle recipes. And here again after years, someone was cooking ramen for me. I felt a smile creep on my lips.

Fuck! I couldn’t let Jung Hoseok see my emotions. I immediately shifted to my perpetual passive expression. Out of courtesy, I questioned, “Do you need any help?”

Hoseok looked back at me and replied, “No but thanks for asking. You can take out the soju from the fridge though. I’m almost done here.”

“Okay,” I gave a short reply and walked towards the refrigerator. Opening the door, I got two cans of soju and returned to the table.

After a few more minutes of silence, Hoseok came to the table with two bowls of chicken noodle soup. As he pushed one bowl towards me, I thanked him. I pushed a can towards him and he sat down on the other chair. He handed me a pair of chopsticks and we both began eating in silence. 

The soup had been really cooked well and the tasted delicious. I couldn’t stop myself from appreciating him, although I doubted how much it sounded like a real praise instead of a mechanical one.

“This is really nice. Thank you.”

However, unlike others, he didn’t acknowledge my comment. Instead he replied laughing, “Only if I could show my skills to her! Probably then I would have been in that guy’s place today...”

I stopped eating midway. What was he talking about?

However, Hoseok didn’t let my brain struggle for long as he continued, “Nevermind, continue eating.”

I threw a questioning glance at him but he didn’t seem to notice. So I focused back on devouring the tasty meal. He had great cooking skills, I had to admit at least to myself.

I opened the lid of my can of soju. I took two sips and finished the noodles in a few more bites. By now, he was done eating too. He opened his can and instead of a small sip, he gulped quite a lot of the drink on a single go.

I couldn’t resist myself from speaking up, “Whoa! Hold up hold up...who drinks soju like that?”

Hoseok placed the can back on the table and his fingers gripped on to the metal cylinder tighter. I could clearly see his knuckles turning white due to all the force.

“What’s wrong, Hoseok?” I asked cautiously. I had never seen this side of his. It wasn’t the infuriated Hoseok of morning. This was something scarier for me. It seemed like he recently got his heart broken. And broken hearts were the most lethal.

“What is MB’s real name? Byung?” he asked in a low voice.

I was taken aback by his sudden question. I only opened and closed my lips silently failing to form any coherent words. How did he know MB’s name? Why was this person suddenly getting so much information about our gang?

Hoseok raised his voice as his slapped the top of the wooden table, “Answer me, Min Yoongi! Are MB and Byung the same person?”

“Y-yeah...MB is my codename for Moon Byung,” I gave in. He already knew a lot about me. Knowing my subordinate’s name wouldn’t give him some great advantage.   
Hoseok sniggered and released the pressure on the can.

“But why are you asking about him? How did you know his name...I don’t remember saying it to you this morning,” I questioned him back.

“The world is a small place, Yoongi,” he spoke in his low voice again. It seemed like the alcohol was getting to him. “Do you know that your gang member is dating someone?” he continued.

I shrugged and replied, “And so what? MB has his own life. He can do anything he wants without harming my work.”   
“Oh,” Hoseok went quiet now.

I was still lost. Without fretting over the dancer, instead I took another sip of my drink.

Hoseok spoke up again, “But your member has taken away all the hopes of my heart.”   
“What?” I spat a few drops at his sudden declaration.

“Yes. Byung is dating Yong Sun. I hope you remember her.”

I hummed in reply.

Meanwhile, he continued, “For the first time in my life, I wanted someone this strongly. I was in love with Solar, Yong Sun for you...I am still in love with her...and now all my hopes are lost.”

His head slumped down on his arm which was resting on the table. I looked at him after a long time. His shoulders were shaking and I could hear him sniffling. I was never good in dealing with crying people. I hadn’t seen many people crying before me and perhaps, _it was only my tears which I have always rubbed away_. I felt uncomfortable sitting opposite to a crying person and not knowing how to comfort him. Tears of broken hearts didn’t please my ears ever. Mine was broken too but it was still beating and I still had emotions no matter how deep I had buried them within myself.

He continued in his now cracked voice, “If o-only for once I could tell her how I felt about her...if only I could show her my true feelings...why couldn’t she see my love for her in my behaviour? I just want to hold Solar’s hand and tell her my feelings for once...why can’t I do that? Why did Byung come in her life now? Does she know his truth?...I can bet my everything that she doesn’t...She is ruining her life but she would never give me a chance...”

As he fell silent, I cleared my throat and began speaking, “You don’t have to blame MB for whatever is happening in your life right now...This is your friend’s life, Hoseok. She has every right to do what she wants...If you think she is ruining hers, I don’t believe you are in a condition to bring her back...and it’s funny how everyone thinks we underworld people don’t have feelings and can’t get in relationships.”

“Cause you don’t!” he snapped.

I held on to my calm voice and continued, “Shut up, Jung Hoseok. If you think MB is as cold and heart-less as me, then you’re wrong. How do you know he can’t keep her happy? From where did you get the idea that only you can keep her happy?”

Hoseok sniffled hard and raised his head. Wiping away the tears streaming down his face, he replied, “It’s more about her safety than her happiness...can Byung ensure me that he will always keep her safe?”

Finishing his question, he bit his lip and his eyes turned glassy again.

I replied, “You have no idea about us...I can assure you of your friend’s safety on MB’s behalf. We can go beyond every limit when it comes to the safety of our close ones. You all have prejudices about us but we only have our lovers. They are the only ones who trust us and know our other sides...Maybe it will be wise for you to leave them on their own and move on.”

“Wish it was this easy, Yoongi...what do you know about loving someone?” he continued speaking in between his sobs.

 _I snorted as Jimin’s face appeared in my mind_. I hadn’t seen my ray of sunshine for two days. Hopefully he was okay now that his bullies had taken care of. _Was it not love what I had for Jimin_? Or else why would I follow him for months like his shadow?   
But Hoseok didn’t need to know this fact about my life now.

Instead I answered, “More than your idea of me...Accept it. This is life. It’s all a big game in reality. We are all playing it, only on different levels. We are all in this hell, Hoseok, only dealing with different devils...

And if you don’t fight your own devil, you’ll perish. If you want to survive, you’ll have to battle your way out...Don’t worry about Yong Sun...I will make sure she stays safe.”

 _I don’t know why I said those last words._ They had just stumbled out of my lips even before I could think properly.

I also didn’t know why it was troubling me to see Hoseok crying. I wished that he would stop crying and maybe my assurance would help.

However, I didn’t like the feelings my mind was generating at the moment. I was observing the man on the opposite side of the table. _I hadn’t looked at him for this long ever._ He had a sharp nose, the tip of which was now red with all his sobbing. His eyes were puffy and glassy still. _He had charming eyes, I thought to myself_. His clean-shaven cheeks had prominent marks of his tears. _His dishevelled appearance was doing something to me and I didn’t like it._ Maybe the alcohol wasn’t a good idea.

I felt like drowning. He was drowning in his tears as he broke into another fit of tears, while I was _drowning in him._

I shook my head and stood up. Sipping the last drops in the can, I threw it in the trashcan placed beside the wall.

“You should sleep now,” I said to him. After a short pause, I added, “I’ll leave now. It’s already quite late.”

Hoseok stood up and rubbed his last tears away. He nodded and replied, “Thanks for the company though...return safely.”

I hummed and turning away from him, I walked towards the door.

_✧_ _༺_ _♡_ _༻_ _✧_


End file.
